Slump: Consumer Confidence Sinks to Nine-Month Low

The American people are growing more pessimistic about the US economy as the election nears.  CNBC reports:
 

U.S. consumer confidence unexpectedly weakened in August to its lowest in nine months as Americans turned more pessimistic about the short-term outlook, according to a private sector report released on Tuesday.  The Conference Board, an industry group, said its index of consumer attitudes fell to 60.6 from a downwardly revised 65.4 the month before. Economists had expected an increase to 66, according to a Reuters poll.

The experts were shocked again.  How...expected.  Gallup's unemployment poll predicts a bleak jobs report in August; the official BLS numbers will be released the day after President Obama's convention speech next week.  The Washington Post-ABC News poll we discussed yesterday suggested that most voters aren't especially interested in the gale-force winds of distraction the Obama campaign and their mainstream media allies have been blowing for weeks.  Seventy-two percent of registered say the president's handling of the economy will be a "major" factor in their voting decision.  Gallup's daily tracker shows Obama's job approval dipping to 43/48, with Mitt Romney edging the president in the national head-to-head race.