Eighty-one percent (81%) of American adults know someone who is out of work and looking for a job. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that the numbers vary little across demographic, partisan and income groups.
One-out-of-six working Americans (16%) consider themselves to be among the working poor.
More than one in four employed adults (27%) now say they are looking for a job outside their current company.
Rumors have circulated that the Obama administration is considering a partial mortgage forgiveness plan to help those who owe more than their homes are worth. Just 28% of U.S. voters favor such a proposal.
With mid-term elections just months away, Americans continue to view being a member of Congress as the least favorable of nine professions.
Makers of high-priced new electric cars are hoping that federal tax credits of up to $7,500 will ease the sticker shock for consumers, and 48% of Americans like the idea of tax credits for alternative energy cars.
Most voters favor extending the so-called Bush tax cuts that are scheduled to end December 31, but they’re more ambivalent about whether the cuts should be continued for wealthier taxpayers.
Consumer confidence fell for the third straight month as more consumers rated current economic conditions as poor, and fewer see the economy improving, according to the Discover U.S. Spending Monitor for July 2010.
A sizable number of Americans say they would consider buying an electric car in the next 10 years, but they are less enthusiastic when told the price tag.
Americans are now evenly divided over whether anyone who wants to work can find a job in the United States.
Americans’ confidence in the short-term economy has slipped this month to its lowest level in well over a year.
Small business confidence fell for the second month in July as a higher percentage of small business owners rated the current economy as poor and see it only getting worse, according to the Discover Small Business Watch. The index dropped to 83 in July from 86.1 in June. It has been below 83 only once since the beginning of 2010.
Forty-seven percent (47%) of Americans are at least somewhat confident in the stability of the U.S. banking industry today, the highest number measured since April of last year.
Looking back, voters remain unhappy with the government bailouts of the financial industry and troubled automakers General Motors and Chrysler.
One-in-seven homeowners (14%) say they are at least somewhat likely to miss or be late with a mortgage payment in the next six months.
Over one-third of current homeowners say they owe more on their mortgage than their home is worth, and outlooks for the housing market in the short and long-term are growing more pessimistic.
Americans are evenly divided over the idea of paying higher taxes to save their Social Security benefits, but older Adults like the idea much more than those who are younger.
Most Americans report their state currently has a budget crisis, and they continue to blame politicians more than taxpayers for the problem.
Most Americans would not pay higher taxes for specific public services in their states, but they are more supportive of paying for education and staffing law enforcement than supporting state employees and entitlement programs.
Americans don’t have strong feelings one way or the other about a financial reform bill working its way through Congress. But most reject the notion that some banks are too big to fail and prefer more competition over more regulation.
