56 percent say US is headed in wrong direction, Public Mind poll finds

The latest Fairleigh Dickinson Public Mind Poll finds that a majority of Americans do not believe the nation is headed in the right direction.

More than half of those surveyed in the national poll say the country is on the wrong track, while 48 percent disapprove of President Barack Obama’s job performance.

Poll director Krista Jenkins says the economy is a big factor, said Krista Jenkins, director of the poll based in Madison, New Jersey.

“I think what you have is people who are seeing the signs of recovery, but it has not yet trickled town to them. In a situation like this, you look to the leaders, the person who has been at the helm the last six years, and that’s President Obama,” she said. “And I think that partly explains why he’s doing so poorly.”

By a two-to-one margin, Americans say they want the president to compromise with a Republican-controlled Congress to get things done in his last two years in office.

“Rhetoric on the right or left may sound divisive and reflective of a take-no-prisoners attitude, but it’s clear the public doesn’t agree — and wants to see the needs of the country addressed,” Jenkins said. “Even a plurality of Democrats seems to be tired with the gridlock and prefer compromise over principled objections.”

Only 28 percent of those surveyed said they approve of the direction the country is taking.