“Americans’ rating of the honesty and ethics of the clergy has fallen to 47%, the first time this rating has dropped below 50% since Gallup first asked about the clergy in 1977. Clergy have historically ranked near the top among professions on this measure, hitting a high rating of 67% in 1985.  Gallup has asked Americans to rate the honesty and ethical standards of members of various professions periodically since 1976, and annually since 1990. This year’s poll was conducted Dec. 5-8, and finds Americans viewing nurses, pharmacists, and grade school teachers as having the highest ethical standards. Lobbyists, members of Congress, and car salespeople sit at the bottom of the list.  Since 2005, more than 80% of Americans have rated nurses as having “high” or “very high” honesty and ethical standards. Nurses have topped the list since 1999, the first year Gallup asked about them — with the exception of 2001. That year, Gallup included firefighters on a one-time basis, given their prominent role in 9/11 rescue efforts. In the past, pharmacists and grade school teachers have received high marks on honesty and ethics that are similar to this year’s scores. This year’s 70% rating for pharmacists is down from its all-time high of 75% last year…”