Voters for the first time are blaming President Obama nearly as much as President Bush for the country’s continuing economic problems.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 49% still blame the economic situation on the recession that began under Bush. But 45% now say the nation’s economic problems are caused more by Obama’s policies.

Just a month ago, 55% pointed the finger at Bush, while only 37% said the policies Obama has put in place since taking office were at fault. These findings had remained largely unchanged since May.

Sixty-two percent (62%) now trust their own judgment more than the president’s when it comes to the economic issues facing the nation, up three points from a month ago and up 13 points from early February. Twenty-seven percent (27%) trust Obama’s economic judgment more, and 11% are not sure.

Predictably, nearly eight-out-of-10 Democrats (79%) see the Bush recession as chiefly to blame, while 71% of Republicans say Obama’s economic policies are at fault. But unaffiliated voters are now evenly divided on the question.

Sixty-nine percent (69%) of African-American voters say the recession that began under Bush is still the primary reason for the bad economy. A plurality (49%) of white voters blame Obama’s policies more.

Those earning under $20,000 a year and those making more than $100,000 annually are still far more inclined to blame Bush than Obama. Those in the middle have a different view. Government employees blame Bush much more than those who work in the private sector.

Eighty-four percent (84%) of conservatives trust themselves more, but 56% of liberals have more confidence in the president.

For the 13th straight month, the Rasmussen Employment Index finds that the percentage of firms laying off employees exceeds the number that are hiring.

Obama's overall job approval rating in the Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll fell below 50% for the first time in July. A month-by-month review of the president’s ratings shows that they held steady in August and September before declining slightly last month.

Voters have consistently expressed unhappiness with the bailouts of the auto and financial industries pushed by the president.

Questions linger about the effectiveness of the $787-billion economic stimulus plan proposed by the president and passed by Congress in February. Some in Congress are considering a second stimulus plan to fight the country’s growing unemployment problem, but 62% of voters oppose the passage of another economic stimulus package this year.

Just 42% now support the health care reform plan proposed by Obama and congressional Democrats. Most voters expect the plan if passed to drive up health care costs and hurt quality and expect a middle-class tax hike to pay for it.

For nearly four-out-of-five voters, the bigger problem for the country is not their unwillingness to pay higher taxes. It’s their elected representatives’ refusal to cut government spending.

Sixty-two percent (62%) of Americans say it’s always better to cut taxes than increase government spending because taxpayers, not bureaucrats, are the best judges of how to spend their own money.

For the first time in recent years, voters trust Republicans more than Democrats on all 10 key electoral issues, including the economy, regularly tracked by Rasmussen Reports.

Republican congressional candidates also remain ahead of Democrats in the latest edition of the Generic Congressional Ballot.