Whether it’s the impact of discussions about the potentially catastrophic effects of not raising the U.S. debt ceiling, or the long-term impact of hard economic times and high gas prices, Americans have become more pessimistic about the state of the U.S. economy: in the latest Economist/YouGov Poll, 48% say the economy is getting worse, the highest percentage on this since the beginning months of Barack Obama’s Presidency.
Majorities of those over 30, of Republicans and independents, of those earning less than $100,000 and with less than a college degree, are negative about where the country is going economically. But three in ten Democrats and a third of liberals also agree. Negative feelings about the economy have been on the rise lately — Americans were less pessimistic in 2010.
Americans continue to give President Obama low marks for his handling of both the economy and his overall job. In this week’s Economist/YouGov Poll, just 35% approve his handling of the economy. Nearly six in ten disapprove.
Overall, Americans rate the President slightly better, with 44% approval.
However, none of the party leaders in the debt ceiling debate fare particularly well with the public. Americans are divided in the opinions of President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, with just about the same percentages holding unfavorable as favorable views of each. But the public is negative about all the Congressional figures involved: Democratic leaders Sen. Harry Reid and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Republican leaders Sen. Mitch McConnell and Rep. Eric Cantor, and House Speaker John Boehner.
Do you have a favorable or an unfavorable opinion of the following people?
| Favorable | Unfavorable | Don’t know | |
|---|---|---|---|
John Boehner | 29% | 41% | 31% |
Mitch McConnell | 22% | 39% | 39% |
Barack Obama | 45% | 47% | 8% |
Nancy Pelosi | 30% | 52% | 19% |
Harry Reid | 23% | 43% | 34% |
Joe Biden | 40% | 42% | 17% |
Eric Cantor | 18% | 38% | 44% |
Congress overall has only a 9% approval rating; 70% disapprove.
Full datasets for Economist/YouGov polls can be found here.
Photo source: Press Association
