Michigan’s Upbeat on Economy; Less Positive on President Trump

<p><em>Opinions from the latest </em><a href="http://ippsr.msu.edu/survey-research/state-state-survey-soss"><em>State of the State Survey</em></a><br> <br> Michigan consumers are more positive about their personal finances than they’ve been in nearly two decades, and by some measures, the most upbeat of the century, the latest State of the State Survey finds.<br> <br> Those interviewed between June 13 and Nov. 3 said they consider themselves better off financially than a year ago, comfortable with their current household finances and confident they’ll be better off next year as well.<br> <br> Michigan adults also cooled slightly toward President Donald Trump as the year ended, and gave Gov. Gretchen Whitmer her opening SOSS marks of “fair.”<br> <br> While a positive economic outlook typically bodes well for an incumbent president, Trump’s ratings “are not all that great,” said State of the State Director Charles Ballard, a Michigan State University economics professor.<br> <br> His favorable ratings – excellent and good choices combined, stood at 31 percent. “Almost exactly half gave him a rating of poor,” Ballard said.<br> <br> Michigan’s residents answering the State of the State Survey (SOSS) also weighed in on their confidence in government – state, local and federal. Trust in local, state and federal government all dipped slightly. <br> <br> SOSS results were outlined on IPPSR’s latest State of the State Podcast. Hosts IPPSR Director Matt Grossmann, Associate Director Arnold Weinfeld and SOSS Director Charles Ballard, an MSU economics professor, were January’s podcasters.<br> <br> As Trump seeks re-election in 2020, under a third of Michigan’s residents – 31.4 percent – gave President Donald Trump a combined rating of “good” or “excellent.” Those marks are down from 33.9 percent “good” or “excellent” recorded in the survey completed just about a year ago.<br> <br> In the latest phone survey, 50.3 percent of Michigan’s citizens ranked Trump’s ratings as “poor.” Another 18.3 percent gave the president