Poll: Sequester fall-out is not going the way Democrats had wished

April 5, 2013

by Mary Katharine Ham

(Hot Air) - I am mildly heartened by the fact that the American public is not absolutely freaking out over a small percentage of the budget. It gives me hope that perhaps we can stomach more necessary reforms in the future. For the same reason, Democrats are worried that they’re not freaking out, which is why Greg Sargent at the Washington Post flags this McClatchy-Marist result:

When it comes to the impact of the automatic spending cuts on the economy, 40 percent of adults nationally say they have had no effect on the economy. 36 percent believe they have had a negative impact while 14 percent say the sequester cuts have had a positive one. 10 percent are unsure.

There has been an increase in the proportion of Americans who think these across-the-board spending cuts have had little impact on the nation’s economy.

When McClatchy-Marist reported this question last month, 27% of residents thought sequestration would not affect the economy. Nearly half — 47 percent — said the economy would be adversely affected, and 19% thought it would be positively impacted. Seven percent, at that time, were unsure.

On the personal side, almost two-thirds of adults — 65 percent — say these automatic budget cuts have not had any effect on their family.


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