Poll: Deep economic insecurity

By Ben Adler - Politico
Friday, July 18, 2008 - Web Link
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July 17, 2008

Americans are deeply worried about their economic prospects and they want government to invest in expanding economic opportunity and assisting those in need, according to a new poll released today.

The Rockefeller Foundation/Time magazine poll of 2,008 Americans, conducted June 19-29, found significant increases in economic anxiety, especially among young people and minorities, and dissatisfaction with the federal government’s response.

The percentage of Americans concerned with their own economic situation, at 47 percent, has nearly doubled from 24 percent in January 2007, when the Rockefeller Foundation conducted a similar study. The percentages of Americans who fear losing their job and have failed to pay a bill in the past year also rose since last January.

Seventy-eight percent of respondents said they are facing greater financial risk than in the past and 55 percent say that Congress is hindering them from achieving economic security.

Generation Y, defined as 18- to 29-year-olds in this survey, was the most pessimistic age cohort, with the bleakest view of the future. Forty-nine percent say America was a better place to live in in the 1990s and will continue to decline, compared to 40 percent or less for every other age cohort.

“There was really surprising data on how many young people feel so badly about their financial future,” said Teresa Wells, chief media strategist for the Rockefeller Foundation.

“Half [of young people] think America’s best days are behind us,” said Margot Brandenburg, associate director of foundation initiatives at Rockefeller. “They have good reason to.”