(Reuters) - Americans, who are suffering from high gasoline prices, believe the United States is on the wrong track by a large margin, presenting a fresh challenge for President Barack Obama, a Reuters/Ipsos poll said on Wednesday.
The proportion of Americans who believe the country is on the right track dropped 7 points in the past month to 31 percent, and 64 percent think the country is on the wrong track.
It was the highest number of people in an Ipsos poll who believe the country is going in the wrong direction since Obama took office in January 2009.
Ipsos pollster Cliff Young said the rating was a direct result of gasoline prices that have risen sharply in recent weeks as a result of tumult in North Africa and the Middle East.
"We are moving into a scenario in the near-term that is much more uncertain given the issue of gas prices," he said. "Gas prices specifically are things that affect people's pocketbooks and have an immediate impact."
U.S. retail gasoline prices spiked more than 10 percent over the past two weeks to an average of $3.52 a gallon, the second largest two-week rise on record. Crude oil prices have shot up due to the violence in Libya that has cut that country's production by two-thirds while sanctions have all but halted its exports.
February survey had said Americans by 57 percent to 38 percent believed the country was on the right track.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/09/us-obama-poll-idUSTRE7284SZ20110309
The proportion of Americans who believe the country is on the right track dropped 7 points in the past month to 31 percent, and 64 percent think the country is on the wrong track.
It was the highest number of people in an Ipsos poll who believe the country is going in the wrong direction since Obama took office in January 2009.
Ipsos pollster Cliff Young said the rating was a direct result of gasoline prices that have risen sharply in recent weeks as a result of tumult in North Africa and the Middle East.
"We are moving into a scenario in the near-term that is much more uncertain given the issue of gas prices," he said. "Gas prices specifically are things that affect people's pocketbooks and have an immediate impact."
U.S. retail gasoline prices spiked more than 10 percent over the past two weeks to an average of $3.52 a gallon, the second largest two-week rise on record. Crude oil prices have shot up due to the violence in Libya that has cut that country's production by two-thirds while sanctions have all but halted its exports.
February survey had said Americans by 57 percent to 38 percent believed the country was on the right track.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/09/us-obama-poll-idUSTRE7284SZ20110309