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Fraud and corruption are a growing concern for voters

Extended "Face the Nation" focus group, October 23 40:59

As the tumultuous 2016 election winds down, whoever becomes President will be faced with a political system many voters believe to be corrupt.  “Face the Nation” host John Dickerson sat with six voters from the battleground state Nevada after the third presidential debate and asked their opinions of Congress for a focus group that aired in part on Sunday’s broadcast.  

“There is 100 percent level of corruption.” Kimberly, an undecided Nevada voter told Dickerson.  “But there are varying degrees of it.”

This sentiment was echoed throughout the room as other participants in the panel expressed similar views of congress.

John, a Nevada voter leaning towards Clinton, blamed the high levels of corruption on human nature saying “everyone’s out for themselves”.

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“Congress is a reflection of the voters,” John said and added, “We vote these guys in office. Are they corrupt? You know, no more corrupt than the average voter.”

Government corruption has been a constant theme throughout Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.  As the Republican nominee continues to slip in national polls, he has made blistering attacks calling the election and the system “rigged.” CBS News Battleground Tracker polling in Florida indicate Republican voters in Florida agree with their presidential nominee.

“Republicans overwhelmingly think that it [fraud] exists, that it is widespread,” CBS News Director of Elections Anthony Salvanto said during Sunday’s broadcast of “Face the Nation”.  “They think that Donald Trump would actually win the presidency were it not for fraud.”  Salvanto contributed this to a “broader loss of faith” in American institutions.

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In the same broadcast, Republican consultant and CBS News contributor Frank Luntz told Dickerson “Republicans have felt this ever since Rudy Giuliani’s campaign in 1989 and again in 1993.”  Luntz, however, called this thinking a “poison” and warned that it will make it harder for the winner of this election to govern over a deeply mistrustful nation.

“This feeling that the electoral system is rigged, the more that that grows, the more impossible it will be after this election to govern,” he said.

With such a high disregard for the elected officials, Dickerson asked the Nevada voters if America needed a “conniving” president in order to make deals with congress.

“There’s a fine line between conniving and strategic.” Kimberly said. “Whether it’s conniving or strategic, Hillary has a plan for our country. I saw Donald Trump have no plan.”

To view Sunday’s full broadcast of “Face the Nation” click here.

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