Few confident presidential candidates can fix economy: poll

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A majority of Americans predict the economic crisis is going to get worse and most are not confident that either U.S. presidential candidate will be able to fix it, according to a USA Today/Gallup Poll published on Tuesday.

Eighty-four percent of those polled predict the economy is going to get worse, even as the U.S. government makes a new push for faster relief to a paralyzed banking system.

A record 91 percent of respondents say they are dissatisfied with the way things are going in the United States, the poll found.

Sixty-three percent said they are not confident that Republican presidential hopeful John McCain, if elected, can end the economic crisis. Thirty-one percent say they are confident the Arizona senator and his economic advisers would be able to turn things around.

On the same question, 50 percent said they were confident Democratic hopeful Barack Obama could fix the economy, compared with 44 percent who lacked confidence in the Illinois senator in this area.

With three weeks before the November 4 election, both candidates are focusing on the economic situation.

McCain planned to unveil new proposals on Tuesday aimed at helping Americans cope with a sharp plunge in the stock market.

On Monday, Obama proposed four steps to create jobs and to cushion Americans against the effects of the economic downturn as he campaigned in Ohio.

Nearly half, 49 percent, said they do not see recovery for a long time, and that the current problems represent an permanent change in the economy. But almost as many, 47 percent, said the economic downturn is only temporary.

Overall, Obama leads McCain 51 percent to 44 percent among registered voters, according to the USA Today-Gallup poll. The poll of 1,269 adults was taken Friday through Sunday, before the Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied to climb 936 point on Monday. The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points.

(Editing by Jackie Frank)