Why does the goal of restraining the power of government in all areas of life have so little political clout given that confidence in government is at historic lows?

Answer 1

Where do these assumptions come from? I would question both of them. Based on the regulatory reductions of the current administration (see Americanbanker.com Bank Regulatory Actions Under Trump Fall to Historic Lows and many other sources), it's clear that restraining the power of government has all the political clout it needs. As far as confidence in government, despite the low confidence scores for Congress, it seems that all the ire is aimed at the "other" political party. Do you wish to clarify?

Answer 2

You could do a PhD thesis on this one, but let's strip it to it's basics.

About half the country indeed wants restrained government, and about half the country wants the government to step in and provide more free stuff and take a larger role in many areas. And for this to happen, government has to get involved and manage all that. So on any given day, there's simply not a consensus, it's a constant battle of world views as to the proper role of government.