Americans appear more upbeat about the direction the country is taking in the short term but are growing more pessimistic about its long-term future.

While an increasing number of Americans say the United States is heading in the right direction, a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 47% now think America’s best days have already come and gone. That negative assessment is up six points from a month ago, twelve points since Inauguration Day, and is now at the highest level of pessimism since May (see trends).

These new findings parallel recent data which shows short-term expectations for the economy have improved dramatically, while longer-term expectations are falling.

Just 39% now say America’s best days are in the future. The nation’s Political Class is much more bullish about America’s future--94% of that elite group say the country’s best days lie ahead. Among those who hold a more populist or Mainstream View, just 29% offer such optimism.

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A solid majority of voters (62%) continue to prefer a government that offers fewer services in exchange for lower taxes. Twenty-eight percent (28%) want more services even if it means higher taxes.

In previous surveys, those who say they favor lower taxes and fewer services have ranged from the high 50s to the mid-60s. Those who want more services and higher taxes have run from 24% to 31%.

Sixty-four percent (64%) of voters say American society is fair and decent, while 26% believe it to be unfair and discriminatory.

Yet while 70% of whites say the society is fair and decent, a majority of African-Americans (55%) disagree. But blacks feel much more strongly than whites that the country is moving in the right direction.

Voters remain closely divided over whether Obama believes U.S. society is fair and decent or unfair and discriminatory.

Eighty percent (80%) of voters believe those who move to America should adopt American culture. Just 11% say they should maintain the culture of their home country.

Most voters (56%) also continue to believe that America’s allies should follow the U.S. lead more often, but 14% say the United States should follow the lead of its allies. Twenty-five percent (25%) say the balance today is about right.

While 63% of Mainstream America say our allies should follow America, the Political Class is evenly divided over whether the United States should lead or follow more.

Forty percent (40%) of all voters say the president believes it is better for the allies to do what America wants more often while 27% say Obama thinks it is better for America to follow its allies. These numbers are unchanged from a month ago.

The Political Class and Mainstream classifications are determined by the answers to three questions measuring general attitudes about government. Most Americans trust the judgment of the public more than political leaders, view the federal government as a special interest group, and believe that big business and big government work together against the interests of investors and consumers. Only seven percent (7%) share the opposite view and can be considered part of the Political Class.

Recent surveys have shown significant differences between the Mainstream and Political Class views on issues ranging from the "Tea Party" protests and government bailouts to perceptions of Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. Most Americans believe that tax hikes are bad for the economy, but only 19% of those in the Political Class share that view.

On many issues, the gap between Mainstream Americans and the Political Class is bigger than the gap between Mainstream Republicans and Mainstream Democrats.

To create a scale and calculate whether someone belongs to the Mainstream or the Political Class, each response to one of the three questions earns a plus 1 for the more populist answer, a minus 1 for the political class answer, and a 0 for not sure.

Those who score 2 or higher are considered part of the Mainstream. Those who score -2 or lower are considered to be aligned with the Political Class. Those who score +1 or -1 are considered leaners in one direction or the other.

In practical terms, if someone is classified with the Mainstream, they agree with the mainstream view on at least two of the three questions and don’t agree with the Political Class on any.

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