Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Pessimistic Public Doubts Effectiveness Of Stimulus, TARP
Pew Research
The public remains doggedly downbeat about the condition of the national economy, even as many experts and economists see signs of recovery.
As has been the case for most of the past two years, about nine-in-ten (88%) rate national economic conditions as only fair or poor, and over the past year there has been no decline in the percentage saying the economy will stay the same (36%) or get worse (19%) a year from now.
In this light, it is not surprising that many Americans are dubious about the effectiveness of the government's principal economic programs.
Just 33% say the economic stimulus passed by Congress last year has helped the job situation and only somewhat more (42%) say the loans the federal government provided to troubled financial institutions prevented a more severe financial crisis.
Less than a third (31%) says that the government has made progress in fixing the problems that caused the 2008 financial crisis.
The political consequences of the public's unabated economic pessimism are evident in the new polling. Barack Obama's overall job approval rating is 47%, the fifth month in a row he has polled below 50%; just 38% say they approve of his handling of the economy.
His party's capabilities are now also under a cloud. The Democratic Party has lost ground to the Republican Party on a wide range of issues, including the job situation.
The latest national survey by the Pew Research Center for the Press, conducted April 21-26 among 1,546 adults, finds that as many say the Republican Party (36%) as the Democratic Party (37%) could do better in improving the job situation.
Four years ago, the Democrats enjoyed a 47%-to-29% advantage on this issue. Similarly, the public is evenly split over which party could do a better job of dealing with banks and financial institutions (36% each).
Nor is there a consensus on who can reduce the federal budget deficit (38% Republican vs. 35% Democratic Party).
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