Poll: Americans gloomy on state of U.S.

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PRINCETON, N.J., Jan. 22 (UPI) -- As President Obama begins his second term, Americans said they were downbeat on the state of the United States and prospects for its future, Gallup said.

Thirty-nine percent of Americans rated the current status of the country as positive, Gallup said results of a poll released Tuesday indicated.

Gallup said the percentage was about the same as in 2010, but it is less than the percentage that expressed such a sentiment since 1979.

At 48 percent, Americans were more positive about where the United States would be will be in five years, but this percentage was lower than any time since 1979, the Princeton, N.J., area polling agency said.

The ratings of current conditions coincide with Americans' satisfaction with the way things are going in the United States, which is at 25 percent, below the historical average satisfaction rating, Gallup said.

Results are based on nationwide telephone interviews with 1,011 adults conducted Jan. 7-10. The margin of error is 4 percentage points.