by According to a new poll conducted by the Washington Post and ABC News, over one third of Americans are of the opinion that Obama’s economic policies are inflicting harm on the US economy.
Blame Both Parties for Bad Economy
But it is not just the Democrats who are worrying Americans. The poll seems to indicate that they are equally unhappy with the policies of Republican congressmen, blaming them in equal doses for the poor showing of the US economy. In some ways they are even more disgruntled with Republicans, giving them a 65% disapproval rating for their handling of jobs, while the president only has a 52% rate of disapproval.
Recession Still Felt
The systemic unhappiness is propelled by the feeling many Americans have that there is no relief in sight from the long recession, despite the fact that the recession was officially declared finished about two years ago. Close to ninety percent of the survey participants believe that the economy is simply not doing well, and about eighty percent are convinced that finding a job is a hard undertaking. Some of the people interviewed expressed feelings of abandonment by Democrats as well as Republicans, with a special emphasis on the current debt ceiling debate which is now raging in congress.
Support in Decline
The poll also revealed that over the past nine months support for Obama’s economic program has eroded. Since last October the percentage of people that believe Obama has hurt the economy rose by 6 percentage points to 37%. This information gives Republicans a weapon with which to attack the president as the race for president begins in earnest.Republicans have already begun to take advantage of Obama’s decreased support. In the latest video which has gone viral from the Republican National Committee there is a pinpoint reference to the large number of jobs which have disappeared since Obama became president. The chant “Where are the jobs?” has been made a popular catchphrase of the Republican campaign by Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney.
