Popular approval for the military has declined sharply in lockstep with America’s deepening political divide, a poll found.

The result, according to the new survey out from the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation, is that a majority of Americans now say that senior leaders in the Pentagon are overly focused on politics rather than war fighting, while the military services’ traditionally high favorability ratings have fallen sharply as well.

“Just four years ago, 70% of survey respondents said they had a great deal of trust and confidence in the military.

However, that percentage has steadily declined,” the Reagan Foundation said in an analysis accompanying the survey results. .

On Thursday, a Pentagon spokesman said he hadn’t read the survey and declined to comment on its findings.

“When you consider the breadth and scope of the missions, and the effectiveness of the fighting men and women who serve around the world, many of them in harm’s way, it’s pretty incredible,” Brig.

However, more than half of the respondents to the survey questioned the performance and competence of the Defense Departments senior civilian and military leadership.

military leadership is the best in the world compared to other countries’ militaries, from 33% in 2021 to 25% in 2022,” according to the Reagan Foundation study.

Exactly half of those polled said so-called “woke” practices undermine military effectiveness, 46% said their lower opinion of the military reflected fears that too many far-right or extremist individuals are in uniform.

The military’s perception problem is having a real-world impact on filling the ranks, according to the survey.

Only 13% of 18 to 29-year-olds said they were “highly willing” to enlist, with 25% saying they were “somewhat willing.” The Reagan Foundation found that 20% are “not very willing” to enlist while 26% said they weren’t willing at all to join the military.

Chip Roy of Texas recently released “Woke Warfighters,” a study that examined the current state of affairs in what they said was an increasingly politicized military.