Rasmussen Poll Best Days Ahead

America's Best Days
GOP Voters Grow Slightly More Optimistic About America’s Future
Tuesday, December 02, 2008

Thirty-eight percent (38%) of Republican voters now say America’s best days are in the future, while 48% think they are in the past, according to the latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.
Just after the election, only 30% of GOP voters thought the nation’s best days were ahead while 55% said they had come and gone.
Democrats say America’s best days lie ahead by a 53% to 30% margin. Among unaffiliated voters, 48% say the nation’s best days are in the future while 35% say they are in the past.
Overall, 47% of voters say America’s best days are in the future, while 37% say they are in the past.
Black voters also grew even more optimistic than they were just after Election Day. Now, 73% say the country’s best days are still to come, compared to 68% on November 6. Just 17% believe the nation’s best days already happened, compared to 23% in November.
White voters remain divided, with 43% who say the best days are still to come and 41% who say the opposite.
These numbers come as confidence among consumers and investors continue to hover around record lows in the Rasmussen Consumer Index, and one fourth of workers worry about losing their jobs in the Rasmussen Employment Index.
However, Barack Obama’s approval ratings continue to rise to record highs in the Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Approval Index.
The latest survey also found that 63% of American voters view society as fair and decent, while 24% see it as unfair and discriminatory. Those numbers have changed little over the past month.
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Black voters are less positive today than they were immediately after Obama was elected president. Just 23% view society as fair and decent, down from 42% on November 6. Over half (53%) now view society as unfair and discriminatory, up from 46% in November.
A separate survey conducted just after Election Day found that black voters grew more positive about relations between blacks and whites after the election.
While 68% of men view society as fair and decent, 59% of women agree. Twenty-one percent (21%) of men and 28% of women see U.S. society as being unfair and discriminatory.
Voters continue to favor a government that provides fewer services and sets lower taxes over one that demands higher taxes but offers more services by a 59% to 28% margin. Over half of Democrats prefer more services with higher taxes, while the majority of GOP and unaffiliated voters favor the opposite approach.
The plurality of voters (45%) believe America’s allies should do what the United States wants when it comes to foreign policy, while 21% say this country should do what its allies want. Another 27% say neither should be the case. Those percentages remain relatively steady each month.
Finally, 73% of voters say people who move here from foreign countries should adopt American culture, while just 13% say they should maintain the cultures of their home countries. Those numbers have also held steady.
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Rasmussen Reports is an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information.
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Scott Rasmussen, president of Rasmussen Reports, has been an independent pollster for more than a decade.