Americans pessimistic about economy: poll

New York job hopefuls
© AFP/Getty Images/File Spencer Platt

AFP

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Americans are more pessimistic about the economy than they have been at almost any time since the start of Barack Obama's presidency, according to a poll released Friday.

As candidates begin to limber up for the 2012 presidential race, a New York Times/CBS News survey showed 80 percent of Americans think the economy is in bad shape and 39 percent think it is getting worse.

That depth of pessimism is similar to levels seen in the first months of Obama's term, when the economy was still in the throes of recession.

The poll offers the White House painful evidence that rising gasoline prices and stubbornly high unemployment is roiling voters, with Obama personally taking lumps for the malaise.

Some 57 percent of people disapprove of his handling of the economy, more than at any time during his presidency.

The poll was conducted between April 15 and 20, with 1,224 adults surveyed across the United States.

© AFP -- Published at Activist Post with license

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