A majority of Americans now say they are pessimistic about the next 12 months as the Biden administration gets worsening marks for a range of issues including the economy, the COVID-19 pandemic, rising crime rates, and a chaotic southern border.
The percentage has risen by 20 points since the last survey was taken at President Joe Biden’s 100-day mark, the ABC News/Ipsos poll reported.
The new survey found that 55% of Americans are now pessimistic about the direction of the country, with just 45% optimistic about where things are headed.
In early May, by comparison, a similar survey found that 36% of Americans expressed pessimism about the country’s future versus 64% who were optimistic.
“After six months in office, the president is receiving mixed reviews for his handling on a range of issues, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the economy, and the troop withdrawal from Afghanistan,” the UK’s Daily Mail reported, citing the survey’s results.
The latest poll found that pessimism has risen among Democrats, Republicans, and Independents. “Among Democrats and Republicans,” the outlet said, “optimism is down around 20 percent.”
But there is a steeper dive among Independents, the survey found: 26%.
Interestingly, the poll of 527 adults conducted Friday and Saturday was heavily skewed towards Democrats and Independents, at 24% and 36% respectively. Just 24% of respondents identified as Republicans, the survey notes.
“In May, 89 percent of Democrats said they were optimistic about the direction of the country over the next 12 months,” the Daily Mail reported.
“The latest survey, however, shows that just 71 percent of Democrats said they were optimistic over where the country is headed,” the outlet added.
And optimism among Independents fell from 64% in May to just 38% this week.
“A majority of the country largely approves of Biden’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, with 63 percent saying the president is doing a good job on that front, according to the survey,” the outlet reported.
“But that figure is low compared to previous polls which showed Biden’s approval rating as overwhelmingly positive.”
In late March, surveys showed that nearly three-quarters of the public, or 72%, approved of Biden’s handling of COVID-19, but these numbers have suffered as the new Delta variant sweeps across the country.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that around 69% of the adult population has received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose.
Surprisingly, Biden gets good marks on his handling of the economy even as inflation spikes across nearly all commodities and industries.
The survey found that 88% of Democrats and 49% of Independents approve of Biden’s handling of the economy compared to just 16% of Republicans.
“Biden is also receiving low marks for his handling of immigration and the surge of migrants across the US-Mexico border as well as a rise in violent crime nationwide,” the Daily Mail reported, citing the results. “Fewer than 4 in 10 Americans approve of Biden’s handling of all three issues.”
When it comes to withdrawing U.S. forces from Afghanistan, Biden gets 55% approval.
“When asked if Biden has delivered on campaign promises, just 52 percent say he has done an excellent or good job keeping his promises while 47 percent says he’s done a not so good or poor job,” the Daily Mail added.
Syndicated with permission from USA Features News.
