Dem pollster says most Americans are uncomfortable with their personal finances

Democratic pollster Nancy Zdanowicz told Hill.TV in an interview that aired Tuesday on “What America’s Thinking” that despite indications of strong macroeconomic growth in the U.S., most Americans don’t feel comfortable with their own financial situations. 

“When you talk about the economy, let’s just be clear, people do not feel very comfortable in their personal financial situations,” Zdanowicz, managing editor at Democracy Corps, told host Jamal Simmons on Monday. 

“They might look at the jobs numbers and they can say ‘OK, that is a solid statistic that I can point to, OK,’ or look at the stock market and say ‘OK, that looks to be a strong stock market,'” she continued. 

“But most people do not own stocks. Most people have not had higher wages. They don’t feel like they can go and get a better paying job in their community,” she said. “They feel the cost of expenses is rising much faster than their own wages are. It is hard out there for working people.” 

Zdanowicz was responding to comments from Republican pollster Jim Hobart, who praised economic growth under the Trump administration in the same interview.

“From a polling standpoint, people are more satisfied with the economy than they have been since pre-the recession,” Hobart, a partner at Public Opinion Strategies, told Hill.TV. “Are there some frustrations with wage growth? Sure, but from a macro perspective, most Americans are as satisfied with the economy as they have been in a number of years.” 

A Gallup tracking poll found last month that 43 percent of Americans polled said the economy’s current condition was “good,” while 14 percent described it as “excellent.” 

Thirty-one percent said it was “only fair,” while 12 percent said the economy was “poor.”

— Julia Manchester