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                            March 9, 2013What They Told Us: Reviewing Last Week’s Key Polls - Week Ending March 8, 2013
Despite record stock market gains and a slightly improved jobs picture this week, Americans still express a lot of uncertainty about the economy and the future in general.
Like long-term economic confidence a month ago, short-term confidence in the U.S. economy is now at a new low. Just 25% of Americans think the economy will be stronger a year from today.
At week’s end, just 14% of consumers rated the U.S. economy as good or excellent, while 46% deemed it poor. Among investors, 18% scored the economy as good or excellent. Forty percent (40%) rated it poor. 
Americans don’t have much hope for the stock and housing markets either. Only 20% think the stock market will be higher a year from now. Most (54%) still believe it will take more than three years for the housing industry to fully recover from the downturn that began in 2008.

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                            March 8, 2013Just 23% Think Feds Should Regulate What School Kids Eat
The federal government has introduced new regulations that put caps on serving sizes and set calorie limits for school lunches, but most American don’t think that’s any of the feds’ business.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that only 23% of American Adults believe the federal government should set nutritional standards for schools. Thirty-two percent (32%) think nutritional standards should be set by parent-teacher groups, while 24% feel it’s the responsibility of state governments. Thirteen percent (13%) think local governments should set those standards. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 American Adults was conducted on February 25-26, 2013 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
March 8, 201335% Think U.S. Economy Fair to Middle Class
Fewer voters than ever now think the U.S. economy is fair to the middle class. 
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 35% of Likely Voters believe the economy is at least somewhat fair to middle-class Americans, but that includes only six percent (6%) who think it’s Very Fair.  Sixty-two percent (62%) think the economy is not fair to the middle class, with 20% who feel it’s Not At All Fair.  (To see survey question wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The national survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on March 6-7, 2013 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.

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                            March 8, 20136% View Hugo Chavez Favorably
Very few voters have a favorable opinion of Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chavez who died earlier this week, but they’re also not very optimistic that U.S. relations with Venezuela will get any better.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that just six percent (6%) of Likely U.S. Voters share a favorable opinion of Chavez. Sixty-seven percent (67%) view the late Venezuelan leader unfavorably, while 27% are not sure. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
How did you do in this week’s Rasmussen Challenge? Check the leaderboard. 
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on March 6-7, 2013 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
March 8, 2013Eventually Sequester Will Cause Real Pain -- And Among First to Suffer Will Be Hungry Children By Joe Conason
The difference between a natural disaster and a disaster caused by politicians is that the latter will almost always hit the poor and the obscure most heavily, while a hurricane or a flood will at least sometimes spread the suffering more evenly.  

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                            March 8, 2013Health Care Law Now Faces Biggest Challenge: American Consumers By Scott Rasmussen
President Obama handily defeated congressional Republicans in the political fight over his health care law. But the law will now face a much tougher opponent.

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                            March 7, 2013Voters Are Slightly More Aware of New Treasury Secretary
Voters haven’t changed their opinions much about newly confirmed Obama Cabinet members John Kerry and Jack Lew.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that just 18% of Likely U.S. Voters have a favorable opinion of Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, including five percent (5%) who view him Very Favorably. Twenty-five percent (25%) view Lew unfavorably, with 11% who share a Very Unfavorable opinion of him. A majority of voters (56%) still have no opinion of the new secretary of the Treasury. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update ? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on March 2-3, 2013 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            March 7, 2013New High: 50% Expect Taxes To Go Up Under Obama
More voters than ever expect their taxes to go up under the Obama administration.
Fifty percent (50%) of Likely U.S. Voters say their own personal taxes will go up under the Obama administration, up 13 points from late 2012 and the highest finding in nearly five years of surveying.  A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that just seven percent (7%) think their taxes will go down under Obama. Thirty-eight percent (38%) expect their taxes to stay about the same, down from 45% in December. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
How did you do in the new Rasmussen Challenge? Check the leader board to find out. 
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls).  Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on February 28-March 1, 2013 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            March 7, 201367% Favor Limits on Drone Use
Attorney General Eric Holder continues to defend the use of unmanned drones to kill U.S. citizens abroad suspected of terrorism and hasn’t ruled out their use on targets here in the United States. 
But Rasmussen Reports polling finds that just 36% of Likely U.S. Voters favor the American government’s use of unmanned drones to kill U.S. citizens in other countries who pose a terrorist threat.
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.

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                            March 7, 201322% Favor Eliminating All Deductions To Lower Income Tax Rates
Not many Americans favor the elimination of all income tax deductions in exchange for lower tax rates. Most think the wealthy are less likely to contribute to charity if their deductions are reduced.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 70% of Adults think it’s at least somewhat likely that wealthy Americans will give less money to charity if deductions for charitable donations are reduced. This finding is up slightly from early April 2009 when 66% believed that to be true. Just 18% think it’s unlikely wealthy Americans would donate less money if deductions are reduced. This includes 44% who say it’s Very Likely the rich would donate less, compared to only four percent (4%) who believe it’s Not At All Likely.  (To see survey questions wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 American Adults was conducted on March 3-4, 2013 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            March 7, 201363% Think Congress Can Always Make Things Worse
Few voters believe Congress cares what they think which helps explain why most feel their legislators can always make a bad situation worse.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that only nine percent (9%) of Likely U.S. Voters think the average member of Congress listens to the voters he or she represents more than to congressional party leaders. Eighty-one percent (81%) believe the average member listens most to his or her party’s leaders in Congress. Ten percent (10%) are not sure. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
How did you do in the new Rasmussen Challenge? Check the leaderboard to find out.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on March 4-5, 2013 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
March 7, 2013Spending Cuts May Be Answer to Slow Economic Growth By Michael Barone
The Dow set a new high on Tuesday, but the larger economy is a different story. What if today's sluggish economic growth turns out to be the new normal? That's the unsettling question asked by some of our most creative economic thinkers.
And the people asking it are not necessarily partisan opponents of the Obama administration. They argue that economic growth rates were disappointing even before the financial collapse and recession of 2007-09.
Take Tyler Cowen, author of the e-book (belatedly published in print) "The Great Stagnation." Economic growth is the product of increases in the labor supply and productivity, he argues uncontroversially.b

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                            March 7, 201341% Recognize Simpson-Bowles Commission Focused On Deficit Cutting
Many in official Washington are now championing the recommendations of the bipartisan Simpson-Bowles Commission for a “balanced approach” to reducing the deficit that includes tax hikes and spending cuts. But for most voters, Simpson-Bowles doesn’t mean a thing. 
Just 41% of Likely U.S. Voters are correctly able to identify the primary focus of the Simpson-Bowles Commission as deficit reduction, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. But 36% are not sure what the purpose of the commission is. Twenty-three percent (23%) thought it had some other focus. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls).  Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on March 4-5, 2013 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
March 7, 2013Some Taxes up, and the Sky's Still There By Froma Harrop
"Most of the media is so sold out to Obama that they're missing the obvious," Jim DeMint said on Fox News only last week. "The policies the president has in place, especially the tax increases that just got in, are going to hurt our economy, probably actually bring it down." The former Republican senator from South Carolina was speaking as president-elect of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.

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                            March 6, 201328% Say U.S. Heading In Right Direction
Twenty-eight percent (28%) of Likely U.S. Voters say the country is heading in the right direction, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey taken the week ending Sunday, March 3.
Voter optimism in the nation’s current course is down six points from the previous week and is the lowest level measured since August of last year.
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The national telephone survey of 3,500 Likely Voters was conducted by Rasmussen February 25-March 3, 2013. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 2 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Fieldwork for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            March 6, 201359% Say It’s No Longer Possible To Work Hard and Get Rich in U.S.
More Americans than ever now believe it is no longer possible for anyone in the United States to work their way out of poverty. They believe even more strongly that it's no longer possible for someone to work hard in this country and get rich.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that just 27% of American Adults now say it is possible for anyone in the country to work hard and get rich, generally unchanged since late 2012. Fifty-nine percent (59%), though, say that is no longer possible, up from 55% in late January and the highest level of pessimism in over four years of surveying.  Fourteen percent (14%) are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
Win an IPad: Take the Rasmussen Challenge! Answers can be submitted until 11:59 p.m. ET on Wednesday, March 6.
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 American Adults was conducted on March 1-2, 2013 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
March 6, 20138% Think Congress Is Doing A Good or Excellent Job
The sequester hoopla of recent weeks hasn't changed a thing: Positive ratings for Congress remain in single digits for the third straight month.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that just eight percent (8%) of Likely U.S. Voters think Congress is doing a good or excellent job. Sixty-seven percent (67%) rate Congress’ performance as poor. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on March 4-5, 2013 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            March 6, 201358% Worry That Government Spending Won’t Be Cut Enough
As Congress and President Obama struggle over ways to reduce the federal budget deficit, most Americans worry that they will raise taxes too much and won’t cut spending enough.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 62% of Likely U.S. Voters are worried most that Congress and the president will raise taxes too much rather than that they won’t raise taxes enough. Twenty-nine percent (29%) are most worried that Congress and the president won’t raise taxes enough. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
Win an IPad:  Take the Rasmussen Challenge!
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on March 4-5, 2013 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
March 6, 2013Sequester: Not Even a Cut By John Stossel
If you're reading this, you've survived the "sequester" cuts!
That may surprise you, since President Obama likened the sequester to taking a "meat cleaver" to government, causing FBI agents to be furloughed, prosecutors to let criminals escape and medical research to grind to a halt!
The media hyped it, too. The NBC Nightly News said, "The sequester could cripple air travel, force firefighter layoffs -- even kick preschoolers out of child care!"

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                            March 6, 201350% Favor Everyone Paying Same Share of Income in Taxes
Americans continue to feel the middle class pays more in taxes percentagewise than the wealthy do but are less enthusiastic about everyone paying the same percentage of their income in taxes.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 60% of Adults believe middle-class Americans pay a larger share of their income in taxes than the wealthy do. Only 28% disagree and think wealthy Americans pay a bigger share of their income in taxes. Twelve percent (12%) are not sure. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 American Adults was conducted on March 3-4, 2013 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.