Hotair
Quelle surprise. Objectively speaking, what isn’t getting worse? The economy? Inflation has eroded buying power far faster than wage growth has boosted it for well over a year now. Interest rates? Going up, and affordable housing choices are shrinking for most Americans as a result. Gas prices? Don’t even get me started.
So why should we expect the latest CBS/YouGov poll to reflect anything other than the fact that, as Cam Edwards always says, everything is stupid and it’s only getting worse?
Americans’ assessments and outlook for the economy are poor, with most anticipating at least a slowdown, if not a recession, in the coming year. On a personal level, views on their own finances are down from a year ago, and many voice concern about the ability to afford things, or to save, going forward. It’s an important sentiment because Americans’ views on spending can in turn impact the economy. On a brighter note, however, feelings about job security remain relatively more confident by comparison.
That’s about the only rosy assessment out of this poll. Views of the economy have grown sharply worse over the last two months, and not just among Republicans. Majorities of all three parties now rate the economy as “bad,” with six in ten Democrats joining that view:
Current assessments of the national economy are getting worse. Just 22% think it’s good — down even further from 26% in May — while the percentage saying it’s “bad” has gone up to 75% — a new high for the Biden presidency. That is a 12-point rise since April.
Majorities of Republicans, independents, and Democrats all rate the economy as bad. The 60% of Democrats who rate the economy bad is notable because it’s moving closer to the views of independents and Republicans, even though a president’s own party often gives rosier assessments than others. Democrats’ positive assessments have dropped over recent months. They were at 42% good last month.
In just one month, the percentage of Democrats who agree the economy is “bad” grew by eighteen points — not a gap change, but in an actual position shift. What changed? Gas prices, for one thi…
