Just 26% of U.S. adults are at least somewhat confident that U.S. policymakers know what they are doing when it comes to addressing the nation’s current economic problems, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

Only four percent (4%) are Very Confident, with 22% somewhat confident.

Nearly the same number of voters (25%) are not at all confident that policymakers know what they are doing in dealing with the country’s troubled economy. Another 45% are not very confident in their leaders.

But voters aren’t just pointing the finger at their government leaders. Seventy-two percent (72%) say the bigger problem for the economy is that Americans borrow too much money. Only 17% say the bigger problem is the lack of available credit.

Adding to this perception is the further finding that 48% of voters think Congress’ passage of a $700-billion economic rescue plan last month was bad for the country. Just 25% think the plan, first proposed by the Bush administration, was good for the country, and 26% are undecided.

In a finding rare to Rasmussen Reports’ recent surveys on the economy, there is virtually no partisan divide when voters are asked about their confidence in policymakers. Only 27% of Republicans are somewhat confident in U.S. policymakers, as are just 30% of Democrats. Twenty-one percent (21%) of unaffiliateds agree.

Twenty-two percent (22%) of GOP voters have no confidence at all that policymakers know what they are doing, and 19% of Democrats agree with them. Unaffiliated voters are even more skeptical, with 36% having no confidence whatsoever in the people making the decisions about the economy.

Thirty-two percent (32%) of male voters are not at all confident that policymakers know what they are doing with regards to the economy, compared to 18% of women.

The level of confidence among both investors and non-investors parallels the national averages, with non-investors slightly more confident in U.S. policymakers.

On Tuesday, consumer and investor confidence recovered slightly after falling to record lows yesterday.

(Want a free daily e-mail update? Sign up now. If it's in the news, it's in our polls).

The findings come as the Democratic congressional leadership is bringing the House and Senate back into session this week in hopes of approving a rescue plan for the Big Three automakers and a second taxpayer-backed economic stimulus plan now pegged at $100 billion. Estimates on the second stimulus bill had initially run as high as $300 billion.

But the White House and congressional Republicans oppose any additional money for the automakers and what the New York Times characterizes as “a national public works program,” which includes money for roads and mass transit, an extension of unemployment benefits, aid to economically troubled states and more food stamps. If the proposals fail in the special session of Congress, Democrats have vowed to bring them up in late January when President-elect Obama takes office and the party has even larger majorities in both the House and Senate.

In a survey last week, only 30% of voters supported a bailout of the automakers. Seventy-three percent (73%) were worried the U.S. government will run out of money with all the demands being made on the federal treasury in the current economic crisis.
In mid-October when talk of a second stimulus plan increased, only 32% supported such a plan. Fifty-eight percent (58%) of voters said more tax cuts would better stimulate the economy than new government spending.

In the last week, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has reversed course on what last month’s bailout monies should be spent on. The plan was sold to Congress and the public as a way to buy up bad assets from banks to free up credit. Now Paulson is saying that didn’t work and that the government should use the money instead to buy partial stakes in troubled banks and to directly fund loans and additional credit for consumers.

Fifty-four percent (54%) of Republicans think passage of the $700-billion rescue plan has been bad for the country, compared to 40% of Democrats. Fifty-three percent (53%) of unaffiliated voters agree. About one-quarter of all three groups think passage of the economic bailout was good for the country. Democrats are more undecided that Republicans and unaffiliateds.

Eighty percent (80%) of GOP voters think Americans borrow too much, compared to 63% of Democrats and 76% of unaffiliated voters. Twenty-four percent (24%) of Democrats say there is not enough credit available, but just 11% of Republicans and 15% of unaffiliateds agree.

While whites overwhelmingly believe Americans borrow too much, African-American voters are more closely divided on the question.

Please sign up for the Rasmussen Reports daily e-mail update (it’s free)… let us keep you up to date with the latest public opinion news.

See survey questions and toplines. Crosstabs are available to Premium Members only.