Fewer than one-in-four Republicans (23%) now rate economic conditions as excellent or good, substantially fewer than did so a few months ago. Throughout most of President Bush’s time in office a large partisan gap has been evident in judgments about the state of the U.S. economy, with most Democrats and independents offering negative assessments, and most Republicans offering positive assessments. As recently as last June, 56% of Republicans said the economy was in excellent or good shape, compared with 20% of Democrats and 30% of independents. However, Republican views have soured considerably, particularly in the past two months. In January, 46% of Republicans rated the economy as excellent or good, compared with only 23% today. Read More