Americans haven't changed their minds about the federal loans made to General Motors and Chrysler late last year to help them avoid bankruptcy, disapproving of them by 59 percent to 39 percent, according to a USA Today/Gallup poll conducted March 27-29. The survey was concluded the day before President Obama laid out his conditions for future aid.

Democrats support the loans 57 percent to 42 percent, while Republicans oppose them 72 percent to 26 percent and independents also disapprove, by 66 percent to 32 percent.

Americans are almost evenly divided on President Obama's handling of the AIG bonuses with 42 percent disapproving and 41 percent approving of his performance, according to a CBS News poll conducted March 20-22. Seventeen percent were undecided. Fifty-seven percent of Democrats give Obama good marks but 65 percent of Republicans and a plurality of independents (44 percent) do not.

That result differences from a Gallup poll released earlier today which said Americans were satisfied with Obama's handling of the matter by 54 percent to 39 percent.

While President Obama has weathered the public outrage over the AIG bonus controversy, public dissatisfaction runs high with all the other players - AIG management, Congress and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, according to a USA Today/Gallup poll conducted March 21-22.

The public is satisfied with Obama's performance by 54 percent to 39 percent, but they are dissatisfied with AIG management by 80 percent to 12 percent, with Congress by 65 percent to 26 percent, and Geithner by 54 percent to 28 percent. The poll was taken before Geithner's unveiling yesterday of a detailed plan for buying up the troubled assets of banks which, although a different issue, at least got him a positive mark from Wall Street where the Dow Jones average jumped 497.48 points.

Three-quarters of Americans want the government to block or recover the $165 million in bonuses paid out by insurance giant American International Group which was the beneficiary of a $180 billion taxpayer bailout, according to a Gallup poll conducted March 17. Only 17 percent believed that the government should not intervene.

Fifty-nine percent of respondents said they were outraged about the bonuses, 26 percent were "bothered" and 11 percent not particularly bothered. Democrats, Republicans and independents all agreed by large majorities that the government should act on the bonuses.

The number of Americans opposed to government providing money to banking and financial institutions has steadily grown since December to the point where now a majority oppose such aid, according to a CBS News poll conducted March 12-15.

Fifty-three percent oppose these programs compared to 37 percent who approve of them. In December, Americans were nearly evenly divided with 46 percent approving to 42 percent disapproving. And these numbers could grow with anger growing on Capitol Hill and among the public over the $165 billion being paid in bonuses to employees of the bailed-out American International group. Forty-eight percent in the poll said they were resentful irresponsible bankers could benefit from the federal aid.

Three-quarters of those polled said the banks' current problems were directly the result of management decisions not economic conditions beyond their control.

Americans are solidly behind funding new government programs to create jobs, aiding states in serious financial trouble and aiding homeowners in danger of foreclosure, but they oppose aid to automakers who are in danger of bankruptcy or aid to banks and financial companies in danger of failing, according to a USA Today/Gallup poll conducted Feb. 20-22.

The Federal Government has taken many steps to deal with problems in the economy in recent months. Please tell me whether, in general, you favor or oppose the government doing each of the following:

The public opposes additional aid for General Motors and Chrysler 64 percent to 24 percent with 11 percent undecided, according to a Rasmussen Reports poll conducted Feb. 16-17.

Fifty-seven percent say they do not believe it is very likely or likely at all that the automakers will ever repay the loans and 57 percent predict one or both companies will go out of business in the next few years. By 44 percent to 33 percent, likely voters say it would be better for the economy to let the companies fail, while 23 percent are undecided.

There's a partisan split on these questions. Sixty percent of Democrats say the auto companies will eventually pay off the federal loans while only 27 percent of Republicans and 34 percent of unaffiliated voters agree.

Congressional Democrats appear to be basking in some of the glow of Barack Obama's high approval ratings so far with 49 percent giving positive marks to the job they are doing compared to 26 percent who approve of Republicans, according to a Diageo/Hotline poll conducted Jan. 21-24.

Right now, 55 percent of voters see Obama favorably and 21 percent "somewhat favorably" for a total positive mark of 76 percent. Voters approve of the way Obama is so far handling his presidency by 63 percent to 9 percent. By 75 percent to 22 percent, they are confident Obama will bring real change to the way things are done in Washington.

Americans appear to have mixed feelings when it comes to the trade-offs between a free market economy and the need for government regulation of business, according to a Rasmussen Reports poll conducted Dec. 21.

Seventy percent of those surveyed believe a free market economy is better than a government-managed one, but voters believe by 52 percent to 36 percent that there is a need for more government regulation of big business, a sentiment no doubt bolstered by the many accounts of the kinds of financial dealings in recent year that didn't get on regulators' radar and contributed to the recent crisis. Forty-eight percent fear the government will do too much in reacting to the country's current economic woes and 41 percent say the government will do too little.

Sixty-five percent believe that government and big business often work together in ways that hurt consumers and investors.