70% of Voters Rate Economy Fair or Poor as Middle Class Dreams Slip Away

The American Dream now carries an “unaffordable” sticker. Around 70% of voters rate the economy as fair or poor despite a rising stock market and steady consumer spending, according to a New York Times and Siena poll. The disconnect shows growing anxiety over housing, education, healthcare, and retirement — core middle-class pillars that roughly two-thirds of Americans believe are falling further out of reach.

• Six-figure earners are turning more negative, with sentiment among those earning $100K+ dropping more than 10% since late 2025 as white-collar job conditions weaken (Morning Consult).
• The drop is tied less to stock market swings and more to rising white-collar layoffs and hiring slowdowns hitting professional workers.

The economic anxiety loop: AI paranoia is compounding white-collar job jitters, creating psychological whiplash as companies push workers to master the technology while signaling it could replace them. “We’ve entered this world where basically people are just on high alert,” says Morning Consult chief economist John Leer, noting that even small negative employment headlines could quickly trigger uncertainty. With housing costs squeezing younger Americans and 58% calling education unaffordable, America’s financial confidence is hanging by a thread.