Blame the rising gas prices, the higher interest rates and a larger federal deficit — a new NBC/WSJ poll shows that American’s are pessimistic and uneasy about the economy.

“You have never seen such a sour mood in the country,” says Democratic pollster Peter D. Hart, who conducted this survey with Republican Bill McInturff. “It is sour, sour, sour.”

How bad is the sour mood? Why the growing pessimism on the economy?

It appears that higher gas prices are partly to blame. A whopping 77 percent say they feel uneasy about the economy, due to rising gas prices, higher interest rates and a larger federal deficit. On the other hand, just 19 percent say they feel confident, because jobs are being created and the stock market is growing.

Ah, but that’s not all the poll shows today… Bush’s approval rate dropped another point and he’s swiftly catching up Nixon’s record of 13 months with an approval rate below 40%.

According to the poll, Bush’s approval rating fell by one point from last month to 36 percent, his lowest mark in the survey. But the troubling news for Bush doesn’t stop there: Hart explains that Bush has now spent nine consecutive months at 40 percent or below in the poll, a feat exceeded only by Richard Nixon (13 months) and Harry Truman (26 months).

The full results of the poll are available here.

On a related note, the WaPo reports that the “pain at the pumps, may be felt at the polls” this fall.

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