TIME POLL: Americans Believe Country Heading In Wrong Direction

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Kevin Lamarque / Reuters

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks about the National Security Agency's secret collection of telephone records from millions of Americans during a visit to San Jose, Calif. on June 7, 2013.

A majority of Americans believe the country is heading in the wrong direction, according to a new TIME poll, with President Barack Obama’s approval and disapproval ratings essentially tied.

Fifty-eight percent of those surveyed said the United States is on the wrong track, with only 33 percent saying it is heading in the right direction. Obama’s approval rating stands at 48 percent—a statistical tie with the 44 percent who disapprove of his handling of his job as president.

On the issues, regard for Obama’s foreign policy performance is bolstering his approval rating, while the president scores poorly on his handling of the economy.

Forty two percent of Americans approve of Obama’s handling of the economy, while 53 percent disapprove. Obama earns top marks for reducing the threat of terrorism to the United States, with 56 percent of Americans approving, as 36 percent disapprove.

On, foreign policy, 49 percent of Americans approve, while 41 percent disapprove, and Americans approve of Obama’s handling of the the war in Afghanistan 50 percent to 42 percent.

On immigration, an issue where Obama has purposefully been hands-off so as not to jeopardize the Senate’s efforts to pass immigration reform, 44 percent of Americans approve of Obama’s performance, while 45 percent disapprove.

The poll, conducted for TIME on June 10 and 11 by the survey research firm Abt SRBI, surveyed 805 people over landlines and cell phones and has a sampling error of ±4 percentage points.