by Calculated Risk on 6/13/2007 08:09:00 PM

From the WSJ: Bleak Mood Drags Down Support for Bush, Congress

"... just 19% of Americans now say the nation is head in the right direction. More than three times that proportion, 68%, say things in the U.S. are "off on the wrong track." That's approaching the most pessimistic mood in the history of the WSJ/NBC poll.

At the same time, Mr. Bush's job approval rating has fallen to his lowest-ever level of 29% ..."

Of course some of this pessimism is due to the continuous negative news concerning Iraq, but from an economic perspective, this might also fit with this sentence in the Fed's Beige Book:

Consumer spending and retail sales were generally up in late April and May, with a number of Districts reporting that luxury items were selling better than lower-end merchandise.
emphasis added

This might explain the slight decline in Household Debt Service to Disposable Personal Income (DPI). DPI is an aggregate number, and perhaps the top few percent are doing very well (and so are luxury items), but the majority of Americans could be struggling.