Poll finds rosier outlook on economy
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NEW YORK - Americans have grown more optimistic about the economy and the direction of the country in the 11 weeks since President Obama was inaugurated, suggesting that Obama is enjoying some success in his critical task of rebuilding the nation's confidence, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll.
Americans said they approved of Obama's handling of the economy, foreign policy, Iraq, and Afghanistan; fully two-thirds said they approved of his overall job performance.
By contrast, just 31 percent of respondents said they had a favorable view of the Republican Party, the lowest in the 25 years the question has been asked in New York Times/CBS News polls.
The poll found that 70 percent of respondents were very concerned or somewhat concerned that someone in their household would be out of work and looking for a job in the next 12 months.
But the number of people who said they thought the country was heading in the right direction jumped from 15 percent in mid-January, just before Obama took office, to 39 percent today. That is the highest percentage of Americans who said the country was heading in the right direction since 42 percent said so in February 2005.
With the poll finding that an overwhelming number think the recession will last a year or more, Obama may find he has a deep well of patience to draw on. The poll found that he shoulders virtually none of the public blame for the economic crisis: 33 percent blame Bush, 21 percent blame financial institutions, and 11 percent blame Congress.
