A Year Later, Bigger Government Suddenly Gets a Better Reception

CHILLICOTHE, Ohio —  Nancy King has long believed that small is better when it comes to the size and scope of the federal government.

But she supports a Washington takeover of the nation’s airport security system--a plan that would bring the biggest increase in the federal payroll in decades. “We’re in a different time,” King said.

Charlene Atwood wouldn’t mind the extra money from a tax cut. “But I don’t know if that would be wise with everything that’s going on,” said the 29-year-old mother and political conservative, as she sorted through bargain T-shirts outside a Hallmark store.

The trauma of Sept. 11 and the frightful events that have followed have transformed the way Americans regard their government. Levels of trust have soared, reaching peaks unseen since the mid-1960s, before the Vietnam War and Watergate began corroding public confidence.

The change in attitude is widely reflected here in Chillicothe, a small city in south-central Ohio that proved a bellwether in the last presidential election.

During a visit one year ago, many of those interviewed felt government and politics were irrelevant to their daily lives. After years of peace and prosperity, several said it really didn’t matter who was president.

But now, gripped by the fear seizing the rest of the nation, town residents have made a decided shift. They are turning to Washington, and yet, to hear people tell it, Washington has its priorities mostly turned around.

Support for Federalizing Security at Airports

There is universal support for the bombing of Afghanistan, and President Bush receives nearly unanimous praise as commander in chief--a striking change from last fall, when many backers here were unenthusiastic about his candidacy.

“I like the fact he didn’t rush, didn’t make snap decisions,” said Cheryl Beatty, 33, who was so turned off by the choices last November she didn’t vote. “Everyone wanted something done now, but he was smart enough to know you can’t do it that way.”

Apart from the bombing, however, Washington appears to be out of step with dozens who were interviewed here last week--pushing through legislation they want carefully considered, dawdling on steps they want swiftly taken.

Virtually everyone said they want airport security to be federalized (a controversial proposal on Capitol Hill, where Republican opposition has stymied legislation in the House).

At the same time, many urged lawmakers to go slow in curtailing any civil liberties (after legislation to expand the government’s surveillance powers was handled with unusual haste).

There is no enthusiasm for tax cuts--the government needs the money more than we do, most said--and great skepticism about bailing out the airlines and other financially troubled industries. Once you start, “it’s hard to decide where you draw the line,” Beatty said.

Above all, many in this modest Midwestern community urged caution, worried that decisions made in these tense times will have lasting--and possibly detrimental--effects.

“If cooler heads prevail, we can think things through reasonably and keep the country financially viable and freedoms in place,” said Janet Williams, 47, a reporter at the Chillicothe Gazette.

A city of about 22,000, Chillicothe is set in the Appalachian foothills about 45 miles south of Columbus, the state capital. Mt. Logan, to the east, appears on Ohio’s state seal; the downtown courthouse once served as capitol of the Northwest Territories.

The 6th Congressional District, which includes most Chillicothe residents, is one of the most competitive in the country: Four incumbents were kicked out in the 1990s as voters zigzagged between the two major political parties. The relationship between lawmaker and constituent has always been intimate; people think nothing of calling their congressman’s home at 10 p.m. to vent.

“If you’re perceived as distant, you’re in political trouble,” Democratic Rep. Ted Strickland said.

If anything, the relationship has grown even closer since Sept. 11. The anger toward government has been replaced by a touching number of phone calls from people who are concerned about Strickland’s personal well-being. “Be careful,” people tell him. “Take care.”

Ohio has long been one of the hardest-fought states in presidential politics. Bush won the state by 4 percentage points after Al Gore essentially gave up at the end. Bush ran even better in the 6th District, where Gore’s position on guns and the environment hurt him with rural voters.

But sentiments were sharply divided in Chillicothe, mirroring the national outcome. (A series of nearly 40 interviews in October 2000 found a perfect split between Bush and Gore.)

Today, it is impossible to find a discouraging word about the president, even from Gore backers. “He seems to be rising to the job,” said Ruth List Jones, who a year ago found Bush “so disgusting, I gave up my idea of voting for Ralph Nader for fun.”

The local landscape has been equally transformed, the city now awash in red, white and blue.

Traveling west on Main Street into downtown, the business marquees read one after another like the defiant shake of a fist: “Stand tall, America.” “United we stand.” “One people, one nation.” “God bless America.”

The swelling patriotism apparently knows no bounds.

Water Beds ‘N Things, the local counterculture hub, once stocked a few flags among the lava lamps, X-rated novelties and shelves of water pipes and rolling papers. On sale before Sept. 11, the flags now fly out the door at full price, along with patriotic T-shirts, refrigerator magnets, key chains, bumper stickers and New York Police Department baseball caps.

For many, though, patriotism doesn’t mean a lockstep march behind their government. On Capitol Hill, House and Senate negotiators are smoothing out differences in anti-terrorism legislation that would make it easier for authorities to monitor private e-mail and phone conversations.

A few here concurred, suggesting the government should have unlimited power to pursue suspected terrorists--whatever it takes.

“It’s like sobriety checkpoints. If you’re sober, what do you care?” said Kenny Bonner, 41, a legal clerk, who suggested a financial frisking of any wealthy person of Mideast extraction who lacks an obvious source of income.

But most urged lawmakers to take their time “and not rush into anything in terms of limiting an individual’s freedom,” as Nancy King, an attorney and longtime Republican activist, put it.

Over at the Kroger supermarket, Barbara Crackovich agreed. “Some things are personal and we should keep them personal. That’s why we live in the United States. It’s freedom,” said the 57-year-old cashier, who decorated her turquoise smock with a flag pin and a button saying, “Wanted!! Osama bin Laden. Dead . . . or alive!”

Airport Security Force ‘a Joke,’ Resident Says

On the other hand, there was near-unanimity in favor of a new federal bureaucracy to screen baggage and passengers at the nation’s airports. That proposal has been hamstrung by conservative lawmakers who say it would bloat an already outsized government.

But Don Darby spoke for many when he described the current low-wage, high-turnover security force as “a joke.”

“I’m not really crazy about the federal government controlling the lives of everyone,” said Darby, 48, having a noon cigarette outside the downtown courthouse. “But if you pay a bit more, you get more professionalism.”

Marvin Jones, publisher of the Gazette, called the proposed $2.50-a-ticket surcharge “a very small price to pay for the security that it would bring.”

Even this out-of-the-way community has felt the fright enveloping the rest of America. Last Tuesday, 750 people were evacuated from the Kenworth Truck Co. when a shipping employee opened a document containing white powder. The substance proved harmless, but the scare was real.

For many here, the wave of fear has awakened not just patriotism but also a greater sense of citizenship.

Penny Simmons was too busy to vote last year and never cared much about politics. “I was kind of wrapped up in my own little world,” admitted the 36-year-old appliance store manager. “Before, it was something others dealt with. But now I realize it can affect me more directly than I thought.”