DESPITE the Biden administration’s furious denials, an increasing share of the American public thinks the U.S. economy is in a recession.

The share of Americans who say the country is in a recession rose to 61 percent recent, polling data from the Economist and YouGov indicates. That is up from 57 percent a month ago.

Last week, Presdident Joe Biden went all out to play down the Commerce Department’s report that the economy had contracted for a second consecutive quarter, a popular definition of a recession.

Biden cited very low unemployment rates to defend his management of the nation’s economic affairs. The unemployment rate in June was 3.6 percent.

“That doesn’t sound like a recession to me,” Biden said.

A broad range of Americans disagree. The polling shows that more than 60 percent of both men and women say we’re in a recession. Whites with college degrees and without say we’re in a recession. A majority of Hispanic Americans say we’re in a recession.

The share of black Americans who say we’re in a recession shot up from 44 percent in July to 53 percent in August.

The share of suburban Americans saying we’re in a recession jumped from 55 percent to 63 percent. The share of rural Americans jumped from 60 percent to 66 percent. Urban dwellers became slightly less convinced we are in a recession, with the share saying we are dipping from 57 percent to 55 percent.

Income makes almost no difference. Sixty-one percent of Americans earning less than $50,000 say this is a recession. Sixty-three percent of Americans earning over $100,000 agree. Sixty-five percent of those in between the upper and lower thirds say we’re in a recession.

A majority of every age cohort in the poll agree we’re in a recession, ranging from 51 percent of 18 to 29-year-olds, to 63 percent of 30 to 44-year-olds, 64 percent of 45 to 64-year-olds, and 66 percent for those 65 and older. Twenty-nine percent of 18 to 29-year-olds say they are not sure if we are in a recession, the highest among any age group.

Democratic