A global anti-corruption watchdog says the United States has dropped four spots in its list of nations' anti-corruption efforts and is now no longer listed in the top 20 for the first time.
Acting U.S. Representative at Transparency International, Zoe Reiter, calls a four point drop in the 2018 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) a "red flag."
She says it comes at a time when the U.S. is experiencing "threats to its system of checks and balances" and an "erosion of ethical norms at the highest levels of power."
Caravans from Central America have inflamed the debate over U.S. immigration policy, with U.S. President Donald Trump using the migrants to try to secure backing for his plan to build a border wall on the frontier with Mexico., VOA
"If this trend continues, it would indicate a serious corruption problem in a country that has taken a lead on the issue globally," Reiter says.
The United States scored a 71 in the perceptions index after scoring 75 the previous year.
"The expert opinion captured by the CPI supports the deep concern over corruption in government reported by America in our 2017 survey. Both experts and the public believe the situation is getting worse," Reiter said.
Bulgarian anti-corruption protesters march during a demonstration in downtown Sofia, VOA
Transparency International uses several criteria for measuring how well a country is fighting corruption, including checks and balances on political power, controls on conflicts of interest and private influence on government, and voter suppression.
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For the 2018 index, 180 countries were surveyed. Denmark and New Zealand topped the list while Somalia, Syria, and South Sudan were at the bottom. (VOA)