News release: “Americans are as satisfied with the way things are going in the U.S. as they have been for the past five months. One in four (25%) say they are satisfied with current direction of the country, while 74% express dissatisfaction.  Americans’ satisfaction with the country’s direction has remained flat over the past year, with the major exception of a drop to a low of 16% in October 2013 during the U.S. federal government shutdown. Otherwise, satisfaction has not strayed from the 20% range since April of last year when it reached 30%. This month’s 25% is essentially the same as the 24% from April and the 25% reading in March. The latest findings are from a May 8-11 Gallup poll. The high point for Americans’ satisfaction with the country’s direction during the Obama administration came in August 2009, when more than a third (36%) of Americans were satisfied with the direction of the country. The president entered office when 13% of Americans were content with the track the country was on. The lowest this figure reached under his leadership was 11% in August and September 2011, during a time of great economic angst. Gallup has asked this question since 1979. Satisfaction reached an all-time high of 71% in February 1999 amid the dot-com boom. The lowest reading (7%) was measured in October 2008 as the nation grappled with the early effects of the 2008 global financial crisis.”