Americans are turning pessimistic amid concerns over economy and coronavirus

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By Jennifer Agiesta and Ariel Edwards-Levy, CNN

The provisionally positive public outlook that marked the first months of the Biden administration has faded, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS. The survey, released Friday, reveals a growing share of Americans who say things are bad in the United States and the economy is in bad shape, with increased concerns about the coronavirus, the economy and crime.

New poll finds 69% of Americans say things in the country are bad today, below the pandemic-era high of 77% reached in January just before President Joe Biden took office but fine above the 60% who thought this way in a March CNN Poll.

And 62% say economic conditions in the United States are bad, down from 45% in April and almost as high as the peak of 65% reached in May 2020 in the era of the pandemic.

The investigation, which was conducted using a different methodology than previous CNN polls, was conducted primarily online and over a period of approximately one month.

Biden’s approval rating is 52% approval to 48% disapproval, with disapproval on the rise since April. The survey was conducted throughout August and early September, and Biden’s ratings changed during that time, with his approval rating from the first half of August (55%) more positive. than during subsequent interviews (50%).

Growing pessimism about the trajectory of the United States and its economy transcends party lines, but Biden’s mounting disapproval appears to be concentrated among independents. While 43% of them disapproved of the way Biden handled his work in a April CNN Poll, this figure now stands at 54%. Among supporters, Biden’s numbers remain about as they were in April.

August saw several important challenges for the Biden administration, including a sharp rise in coronavirus cases in the United States and a chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan as the Taliban quickly took control of the country. In interviews conducted after the fall of Kabul in mid-August, the new poll shows Biden’s approval rating to be 50% approval to 50% disapproval, his approval rating among independents in the United States. survey passing 51% approval in the first part of the field. 42% period in the latter segment.

Vice President Kamala Harris’s approval rating matches that of Biden, with 52% approval and 48% disapproval, marking a 10 point increase in disapproval from April.

The investigation shows a significant drop since April in Biden’s approval of his handling of the coronavirus. In total, 56% approve of the way he manages it, up from 66% in April. The change comes amid widespread concern about the virus. Concerns among Americans about the coronavirus pandemic in their local community are at a higher level than last summer, before vaccines against the virus became available, with 70% now saying they are very or somewhat worried compared to 60% l ‘last summer. Democrats continue to express the deepest concern over the pandemic (58% are very worried), but serious concern has climbed among Republicans from 9% at the end of last summer to 27% now.

At the same time, 77% of Americans say they are worried about the state of their community’s economy, compared to 58% who said the same thing last summer. This increase is largely due to a negative development among Republicans (from 28% worried last year to 85% worried now), but majorities in all parties express concern about the economy (70% among Democrats, 76 % among independents) and overall assessments of the state of the economy have deteriorated since spring. In April, 54% said the economy was in good shape, the first time that figure had crossed 50% since before the pandemic started, but now only 38% say the economy is in good shape, with declining ratings from both Democrats and Republicans.

The survey also reveals an increase in concerns about the risk of crime in communities where Americans live, with 57% now saying they are worried, up from 37% at the end of last summer. The change also crossed party lines, with concern rising 26 points among Republicans, 20 points among Democrats and 16 points among Independents.

The coronavirus (36%) and the economy (20%) are most frequently mentioned as the most important problems facing the country. No other issue is cited in an open question by more than 9% of Americans. And when Americans are asked to name the biggest economic problem their families face today, rising prices and the cost of living are the biggest problem, with 43% citing something related to inflation or cost. of life as their most pressing problem.

Although only 4% cite a crime or gun problem as the most significant problem facing the country, most Americans (55%) say it is very important to them that the federal government tackles the increase in gun violence, slightly ahead of those who say it is important for the government to enact stricter laws to counter racist policies and institutions (52% very important) and to take action aggressive measures to slow the effects of climate change (51%). About half say it is very important for the federal government to make a significant investment in improving infrastructure (49%) or passing legislation that would expand access to the vote (47%). A similar share, 49%, say it is very important for the federal government to take action to stop the flow of undocumented immigrants to the United States.

However, Americans’ perceptions of the importance of these issues are deeply divided among parties. Among Democrats, around 8 in 10 say it is very important to counter racist policies, tackle gun violence, slow climate change and expand access to the vote, while less than 3 Republicans in 10 say the same thing. Republicans see stemming the flow of undocumented immigrants much more important than Democrats, 84% very important versus 22%.

Americans express widespread anger about the way things are going in the United States, with 74% of them saying they are at least somewhat angry with things in the country today. It’s about as prevalent as last summer, but the feeling is less intense now. While 51% said they were “very angry” last year, only 26% feel the same today, halfway between the level of intense anger measured in the early years of Donald Trump’s presidencies (31% ) and Barack Obama (23%).

The partisan dynamic behind these angry feelings has changed over the past year. Anger rose nearly 20 points among Republicans, while losing nearly 30 points among Democrats, but even with these changes party majorities say they are at least somewhat angry with the state of America today.

The new CNN poll was conducted by SSRS from August 3 to September 7 among a random national sample of 2,119 adults initially contacted by mail. Interviews were conducted online or over the phone with a live interviewer. The results for the full sample have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 2.8 percentage points.

The change in methodology means that changes in results from previous CNN surveys may be at least in part due to differences in the way respondents answer questions when they themselves complete an online survey compared to to when speaking to an interviewer on the phone, and in the increased number of respondents who express an opinion on most issues.

Earlier this year, some self-administered polls found higher scores and lower no-opinion responses to questions about Biden’s approval rating than some telephone polls. For example, in April, around 100 days of Biden’s presidency, when many pollsters were researching around the same time, the AP-NORC Center poll, which, like the new CNN poll, is conducted primarily in line with some phone conversations. , found Biden’s approval rating at 63%, and a CBS News / YouGov poll conducted entirely online around the same time put his approval rating at 58%. The April CNN telephone poll showed a 53% lower approval rating, with a higher share expressing no opinion on Biden’s presidency. CBS News and AP-NORC both released polls in late August that showed Biden’s approval ratings to single digits. Telephone polls over the same period showed similarly-sized drops in Biden’s approval numbers, including an 8-point mismatch in the ABC News / Washington Post poll and a 10-point drop in NPR / PBS NewsHour / Marist.

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