The House of Representatives voted on Tuesday night to reaffirm “In God We Trust” as the national motto of the United States. The resolution, sponsored by Virginia Republican J. Randy Forbes, was overwhelmingly passed by a vote of 396 to 9. At a time when public trust in government and major institutions like the banks is at an all time low, what do Americans trust in? It’s a question The Takeaway posed to listeners. Who or what does America trust? God? The almighty dollar? The Federal Reserve? Justin Wolfers, a visiting professor of economics at Princeton University, studies public trust. He just co-authored a paper with Betsey Stevenson called “Trust in Public Institutions over the Business Cycle.”
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