Americans are growing more optimistic about the U.S. economy, a sentiment that is benefiting President Barack Obama despite some publicly expressed disenchantment regarding his handling of rising gasoline prices and swollen government budget deficits. An Associated Press-GfK poll shows that more than two out of five people believe the U.S. economy will get better, while a third think it will stay the same; nearly a fourth think it will get worse, a rebound from last month’s more pessimistic attitude. And, for the first time since the 100-day mark of his presidency, slightly more than half of those polled approve of Obama’s stewardship of the economy. A public that is confident about economic performance is more likely to spend more and accelerate the economy’s resurgence. The poll was conducted May 5-9 in the aftermath of the U.S. commando raid that killed Osama bin Laden.
Today’s poll question: Are you more or less confident about the state of the U.S. economy than you were at the start of the year?
