GUEST COLUMN.

From April 1-11, the world watched in awe as the crew of Artemis II conducted the first lunar flyby in over 50 years and traveled further into space than any humans before them. The accomplishment was inspiring, but many appeared to be surprised by the government's competence and ability to pull off such a dramatic feat.

That’s a sad bit of commentary, but it raises the question of why the public was surprised and the answer is pretty obvious. For decades, Americans have been told that the government is incompetent, staffed by lazy and ineffective bureaucrats. Granted, the government often fails, but the public sector succeeds more than it is given credit for.

Still, our national conversation tends to dwell on government failures rather than successes, which undermines public trust and the effectiveness of public problem-solving. Focusing public discussion on government achievements is essential to improving the sector and tackling society's pressing challenges.

Even with the success of the Artemis II mission, a notable amount of the media coverage focused on the negative, such as the mission potentially being canceled due to the federal budget standoff and issues with the spacecraft’s toilets and email. Of course, the press shouldn’t avoid  telling the whole story – in this case the  potential of Artemis II to spark a space race between the U.S. and China. But when the positive accomplishments aren’t given adequate attention, the result is unforeseen damage to the work of the public sector in our nation.

Over the decades in which news outlets, politicians, and scholars have been bashing the public sector, the public’s trust in government has declined significantly. At times, the public sector certainly deserved to be bashed. Examples include LBJ and Nixon lying to the public about Vietnam, leaders overpromising what the government can accomplish, and the daily and even moment-to-moment chaos and failures of the leadership in the federal government.

But government does work, and this success is often unnoticed, whether it is achievements like Artemis II or micro-level accomplishments like a public-school teacher changing the lives of their students. There are endless examples of states and localities that have created new programs, and particularly at the local level people who are directly affected often appreciate them. This is particularly true of cities, counties and states where the government is somewhat closer to the public. Given the closer proximity, people are more likely to see the successes of state and local governments, which may explain why the public tends to trust those levels of government more than the national government.

Still, having a public being washed in a sea of discussion about government failures, with little acknowledgment of its successes, has contributed to the decline in public trust, which, in turn, makes it even more difficult for the public sector at all levels to address public problems.

The public, however, is craving discussion about the public sector that emphasizes its positive features. We are famished for any evidence that people and institutions can accomplish things.

In response to decades of negativity about the public sector, a school of thought in the social sciences advocating a refocusing of public discourse on government toward the positive has developed in recent years. To reframe government in a positive light, we need to study what works in the public sector, streamline administrative burdens that frustrate the public, highlight public successes in the media, and simply be positive about the public sector's work.

Going forward, we need to be honest about the government’s failures but celebrate the public sector’s achievements. Leaders can use these successes to inspire the public to engage with government and help address the problems in our nation. As a nation, our leaders used to do this, with JFK inspiring a generation to believe we could first go to the moon, and many other leaders following the idea of a happy warrior. Inspiration and positivity are needed again.

Highlighting the success of Artemis II is positively affecting the public sector. For example, during the DOGE attacks on the federal government in the early days of Trump’s second term, NASA lost over 4,000 employees. After the positive attention from Artemis II, however, the agency is hiring again. Positivity about the public sector inspires us, and with that inspiration, we can address problems.

The contents of this Guest Column are those of the author, and not necessarily Barrett and Greene, Inc

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