The Nation - News from Dec. 25, 1988

Fifty-six percent of Americans surveyed in the latest Gallup Poll said they are satisfied with the way things are going in the country, showing the public mood to be at its brightest in two years. Forty percent said they are dissatisfied with the current state of affairs. Americans’ satisfaction with the way things are going in their personal lives has not been higher in the last decade--87% are satisfied, while only 12% are dissatisfied. The high point in satisfaction with the state of the nation during the Reagan years occurred in early 1986, when the poll found 66% of the public with a positive outlook. However, a loss of public confidence in President Reagan resulting from disclosure of the Iran-Contra affair contributed to a sharp drop in satisfaction with the state of the nation in late 1986. The proportion satisfied fell from 58% to 47% between September and December of that year, corresponding to a decline in the President’s approval ratings during the same period.