27% of Voters US Society Unfair

America's Best Days-From the Rasmussen Poll

60% View American Society As Fair and Decent
Thursday, October 08, 2009

Just 60% of U.S. voters now say that American society is generally fair and decent, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

That’s down nine points since late August and the lowest measure since President Obama took office in January, fueled in large part by growing unhappiness among African-American voters.

Twenty-seven percent (27%) of all voters say U.S. society is basically unfair and discriminatory, up six points from late August and the highest level measured since December.

Only 14% of African-Americans now feel society is fair and decent. That number has dropped 41 points from 55% a month after Obama took office. Sixty-six percent (66%) of black voters think society is unfair and discriminatory, up 26 points since early February.

The majority of white voters (65%) say society is fair and decent. Seventy-two percent (72%) of all other voters agree.

A number of prominent Democrats, including former President Jimmy Carter, suggested that opposition to the health care reform plan proposed by Obama was racist, but just 12% of voters shared that view. Sixty-seven percent (67%) disagreed.

Forty-one percent (41%) of voters think the president views American society as fair and decent. This number has remained fairly consistent since he took office. Forty-three percent (43%) feel the president views society as unfair and discriminatory, down six points from July when he commented on a situation involving a black Harvard professor and a white Cambridge police officer. Sixteen percent (16%) are not sure what the president thinks of society.

While 67% of Democrats believe the president views society as generally fair and decent, nearly the same number of Republicans (68%) say he views society as unfair and discriminatory. The plurality (47%) of voters not affiliated with either party says Obama thinks society is unfair and discriminatory.

Thirty-two percent (32%) of all voters say America’s best days are in the future, the lowest finding since July of last year. Fifty percent (50%) believe America’s glory days are in the past, up 15 points since the president took office. Eighteen percent (18%) are not sure.

The latest survey also finds that 26% of voters prefer a larger government with more services and higher taxes, up seven points from August but fairly consistent with results found over the past several years. Most voters (63%) continue to prefer a smaller government that offers fewer services with lower taxes, down seven points from August.

When it comes to foreign policy, 52% of voters say America's allies should do what the United States wants, while 11% say it would be better if this country did what its allies want. Those numbers have remained fairly consistent over the past several months.

Separate polling finds that only 31% of voters believe the United States is heading in the right direction. Sixty-two percent (62%) believe the nation is heading down the wrong track, down 10 points from the week of the presidential election.

Voters are not optimistic about the future for America's children, with 62% who say today’s children will not be better off than their parents, up from 47% at the beginning of the year.