Poll: US Divided in Half over Competing Budgets

Americans clearly have conflicting views about how to clean up our fiscal mess. A new Gallup/USA Today poll shows a near even split between those who favor the budget plan of President Barack Obama and those who favor the plan of House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, Politico reports.

The exact numbers are 44 percent for Obama’s proposal to cut the budget deficit, and 43 percent for Ryan’s proposal, with 14 percent having no opinion. But support is slipping for Obama’s program. Earlier this month, a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll showed 48 percent support for Obama’s plan and 43 percent for the Republican plan.

The age group most strongly backing Ryan’s program is people over 65, with 48 percent of them supporting his plan. That means a substantial number of seniors approve of his call for Medicare reform.