On vaccine rollout, Biden gets positive rating

Plus, Americans overwhelmingly say marijuana should be legal April 17, 2021 Weekly Roundup The latest findings from Pew Research Center · Subscribe ↗ Biden nears 100-day mark with strong job approval, positive rating for vaccine rollout Joe Biden approaches the 100-day mark of his presidency with a relatively strong job approval rating (59%) and positive views among the public of the coronavirus aid package passed by Congress last month. Nearly three-quarters of Americans (72%) say the Biden administration has done an excellent or good job managing the manufacture and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines to Americans. See all coronavirus research Sign up for our monthly politics newsletter Americans’ views of the problems facing the nation Of 15 issues asked about, the cost of health care is the only one seen as a very big problem by a majority of Americans, though about half say that the federal budget deficit, violent crime, illegal immigration and gun violence are very big problems. A similar share name the coronavirus outbreak as a very big problem – though that is down significantly from last summer, when nearly six-in-ten (58%) said this. Republicans and Democrats far apart on biggest problems facing the country U.S. labor market inches back from the COVID-19 shock, but recovery is far from complete The coronavirus outbreak sent shock waves through the U.S. labor market, pushing the unemployment rate to near record highs and causing millions to leave the workforce. A year later, a full recovery for the labor market appears distant. From February 2020 to February 2021, a net 2.4 million women and 1.8 million men left the labor force, representing drops of 3.1% and 2.1%, respectively. Hispanic and Black women accounted for much of the decrease in labor force participation among women. Fewer jobs have been lost in the EU than in the U.S. during the COVID-19 downturn Americans overwhelmingly say marijuana should be legal for recreational or medical use As more states continue to legalize marijuana, an overwhelming share of U.S. adults (91%) say either that marijuana should be legal for both medical and recreational use (60%) or that it should be legal for medical use only (31%). Older adults are far less likely than young people to favor marijuana legalization for recreational use. Majorities of adults see decline of union membership as bad for the U.S. and working people At a time when the labor movement in the United States has been facing formidable challenges, majorities of Americans see the long-term decline in the share of workers represented by unions as a bad thing for both the country (56%) and working people (60%) in the U.S. There are sharp partisan differences, with 72% of Democrats saying the decline in union membership has been a bad thing for the country and 40% of Republicans saying the same. Amazon vote comes amid recent uptick in U.S. unionization rate Americans’ views of Asia-Pacific nations have not changed since 2018 – with the exception of China 6 facts about America’s STEM workforce and those training for it Key facts about the changing U.S. unauthorized immigrant population From our research 44% The share of the public that says that Joe Biden has changed the tone and nature of political debate in the United States “for the better.” Support Pew Research Center In times of uncertainty, good decisions demand good data. Please support Pew Research Center with a contribution on the Center's behalf to our parent organization, The Pew Charitable Trusts. DONATE Newsletter preferences View in browser Unsubscribe Facebook Twitter Instagram Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank. As a neutral source of data and analysis, Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. © 2021 Pew Research Center