Americans are more worried about inflation and the rising cost of living than the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll.
“Just 37% of Americans name the virus as one of their top five priorities for the government to work on in 2022, compared with 53% who said it was a leading priority at the same time a year ago,” the AP stated. “The economy outpaced the pandemic in the open-ended question, with 68% of respondents mentioning it in some way as a top 2022 concern. A similar percentage said the same last year, but mentions of inflation are much higher now: 14% this year, compared with less than 1% last year.”
As the AP explained, “Consumer prices jumped 6.8% for the 12 months ending in November, a nearly four-decade high. Meanwhile, roughly twice as many Americans now mention their household finances, namely, the cost of living, as a governmental priority, 24% vs. 12% last year.”
“The poll was conducted in early December, when worries about the virus were rising as omicron took hold in the country, but before it sparked record caseloads, overwhelmed testing sites and hospitals and upended holiday travel,” the outlet continued. “Still, in recent follow-up interviews with participants, including self-identified Democrats, many said those developments didn’t shake their views.”
According to a recent Fox Business survey, 47% of Americans believe that President Biden’s policies were “hurting” the economy, and only 22% believe they were “helping.” The survey also found that 46% of Americans believe that Biden’s social spending plan would “push inflation hire.”
