39% of Americans Say That Unemployment is Nation's Most Pressing Issue

According to a Gallup poll that was released earlier this morning, unemployment/jobs is once again the nation's most pressing issue in the minds of average Americans.

Gallup asked a number of Americans the question, "What do you think is the most important problem facing the country today?"

Here is a look at the responses:

Unemployment/jobs - 39%
Economy - 28%
Dissatisfaction With Government - 14%
Deficit - 12%
Healthcare - 7%
Immigration - 4%
Lack of money - 4%
Education - 4%
Ethical/Moral Decline - 3%
Wars/Fear of war - 3%

As you can see, the majority of Americans listed some kind of an economic issue (unemployment/jobs, economy, deficit) as their biggest concern.

Thanks to President Obama's recently released jobs bill, unemployment/jobs surged as the nation's #1 concern in September, up from 31% in August.

In terms of the nation's most pressing issue (in the eyes of those who were surveyed by Gallup), the federal deficit fell from 17% to 14% in September as the battle over the nation's debt ceiling faded from memory and was replaced by a new issue - jobs and Obama's jobs bill.

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Another interesting piece of data from the survey - when asked "Which political party do you think can do a better job of handling the problem you think if most important - the Republican or Democratic party", Americans chose the Republican party by a 44% to 37% margin. According to Gallup, this is the largest advantage that the GOP has enjoyed in this poll since January of 1995.

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In the end, it is hard for many Americans to be overly concerned with anything other than jobs when so many are having troubles making ends meet and keeping food on the table. Which party will be most successful in bringing down the nation's unemployment rate? This is the question that will ultimately decide the 2012 Presidential election.




Source: Gallup.com - Unemployment Re-Emerges as Most Important Problem in U.S.

Filed under: The Economic Meltdown