Just out from USAToday …
Americans are as down as they’ve been in decades about the state of the country and its polarized politics, even as they express soaring confidence that Barack Obama will be able to turn things around.
A USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds stratospheric expectations for the incoming president that his own supporters acknowledge may be unrealistic. A majority of those surveyed say Obama will be able to achieve every one of 10 major campaign promises, from doubling the production of alternative energy to ensuring that all children have health insurance coverage.
Seven in 10 predict the nation will be better off when Obama’s term ends in four years.