USA Africa Dialogue Series - As Fellow Alumnus And Brother Bill Cinton Said, "It's The Ecnomy, Stupid!"

Two Major Factors for the US 2012 Presidential Elections:

Employment Index Slips to 2012 Low

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

The Rasmussen Employment Index slipped two points in July to 80.5, marking the lowest level of confidence since December 2011.

Still, worker confidence is up 10 points from a year ago and 12 points from two years ago.

Now, however, just 20% of working Americans report that their firms are hiring while 22% report layoffs. This marks the first time in nine months that the number laying off workers has topped the number hiring. 

Generally speaking, a decrease in the Rasmussen Employment Index suggests the upcoming government reports on job creation will be weaker than the prior month's. However, perceptions of the labor market have been somewhat erratic lately.

49% Trust Romney More On Economy; 43% Trust Obama More

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Voters continue to trust likely Republican nominee Mitt Romney more than President Obama when it comes to the economy and taxes but are more narrowly divided on three other key issues.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely Voters shows that 50% trust Romney more to handle the economy, while 42% trust the president more. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on June 11-12, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Fieldwork for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.