Here is an amusing, yet depressing, Gallup headline,

Republicans All Alone in Viewing the Economy as in Good Shape
Independents and Democrats are quite negative

PRINCETON, NJ — Americans continue to resist giving the nation’s economy positive ratings, regardless of what so-called “hard” economic indicators may show. Only about a third of Americans rate the current economy as excellent or good and 6 out of 10 say the economy is getting worse, not better.

Democrats will tell you that Republicans are happy with the economy because they have all the money, because tax cuts are for the rich, etc. These are tried and true political talking points, but they don’t mesh with reality.

Most people are employed by small businesses, which are the true engine of the economy. The signs of continued expansion are strong and getting stronger, as noted today by Tom Blumer at BizzBlog,

Venture Capital Money Is Flowing Like Water�?�. In Silicon Valley, and Entrepreneurs Aren�??t Even Asking for It! It will be interesting to see whether news of this outpouring of venture money, which as you will see is truly remarkable, gets out of the financial pages in The So-Called Mainstream Media.

Remember the gloom and doom several years ago as punditeers said that Silicon Valley would never be the same again? Somebody forgot to tell the investing community.

While this is good news for continued economic expansion, what about the issue of Democrats and their dissatisfaction with the economy? Is the Democrats core constituency really left behind by the Bush economy?

Census Bureau Finds Number of Hispanic-Owned Businesses Growing Fast

WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Hispanic-owned businesses grew at three times the national rate for all companies from 1997 to 2002, the government said Tuesday. Hispanics owned nearly 1.6 million businesses in 2002, a 31 percent increase from five years earlier, according to the Census Bureau report.

Last year SBA business loans for minorities increased by 40% and for African-Americans by 75%.

Minority Home Ownership Initiative: Minority homeownership is at an all-time high

In June 2002, the President announced the goal of increasing the number of minority homeowners by at least 5.5 million families before the end of the decade. The Census estimates an increase of 1.54 million minority homeowners since the President launched his initiative.

Real disposable incomes have risen 2.2 percent over the past 12 months. Since January 2001, real after-tax income per person has risen 8.2 percent.

Could it be as simple as the difference in their outlook on life? Sounds crazy. Maybe not,

Some 45% of all Republicans report being very happy, compared with just 30% of Democrats and 29% of independents. This finding has also been around a long time; Republicans have been happier than Democrats every year since the General Social Survey began taking its measurements in 1972.

Or is the media’s relentlessly negative spin on good economic news the real culprit behind the disconnect between the numbers and the perception?

I say it is a combination of both.