An overwhelming majority of Americans think the country is heading into a recession, and four in five say the economy is in poor or “not so good” shape, according to a new poll.
The Quinnipiac University Poll found that 85% think it is likely or somewhat likely there will be an economic recession in the next year amid fears of slowing growth and runaway inflation. Only 8% think it is “not so likely,” and 4% don’t see a recession happening at all.
Roughly one in five Americans think the economy is in excellent or good shape. Taken together, the results are the most negative description of the economy in a Quinnipiac poll since President Biden took office.
“Americans believe a recession is not a mere threat, it’s a looming reality,” Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Mallo said Wednesday.
Republican operatives seized on the poll results Thursday as they turn a sluggish economy into the focus of their bid to retake Congress.
The National Republican Congressional Committee, the campaign arm for the House GOP, said Americans fearing a recession “may be right,” pointing to record gas prices and a nosedive on Wall Street.
“There is no positive spin Democrats can put on their economic record. They began destroying our economy the minute they took control of the government,” NRCC spokesman Mike Berg.
Mr. Biden has acknowledged that inflation is a problem and says he’s working to fix wobbly supply chains in the wake of the pandemic.
He’s blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin for rising gas prices, as the world cuts off Russian energy. The White House is pushing big social spending to blunt the impact of rising costs and has accused companies of price gouging amid pandemic shocks, a charge that executives deny.
