Despite the new spirit of bipartisanship in Washington and the sense of optimism inside the beltway that a budget agreement may finally be at hand, the American public is extremely bearish about the prospects for a balanced budget. The public's lack of confidence in its political leaders' ability to balance the budget is matched by its lack of personal enthusiasm for it. If a budget deal had been achieved a year ago, the Republicans would have received much more of the credit. Giving the GOP credit has fallen off most among white men, southerners and Catholics. Nonetheless, Republican enthusiasm for a balanced budget has fallen off significantly since last year, when a majority thought balance would have a positive effect on them personally.
Independents are even more in favor of compromise and conciliation.
On an issue by issue basis, however, this spirit of bipartisanship is less clear. The public divides largely along party lines on such contentious issues as the federal budget, reform of the Medicare system, the environment and abortion. The public splits evenly over which party's position on the federal budget it favors. Traditional Democratic constituencies, such as women, minorities and those with low levels of income and education, said the Democratic Party's position comes closer to their own. Men, whites and affluent respondents favor the Republican Party's position.