By LINLEY SANDERS, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans’ hope for their future has fallen to a new low, according to new polling.

Related Articles

Today in History: February 10, Chess champ loses against a computer

Judge blocks California’s ban on federal agents wearing masks but requires badges be clearly seen

The US has a new center in Texas to disperse sterile screwworm flies to block a parasite it spawns

Catherine O’Hara died from a pulmonary embolism. Cancer was the underlying cause

Person is shot in a high school in Maryland and a suspect is in custody, police say

In 2025, only about 59% of Americans gave high ratings when asked to evaluate how good their life will be in about five years, the lowest annual measure since Gallup began asking this question almost 20 years ago.

It’s a warning about the depth of the gloom that has fallen over the country over the past few years. In the data, Gallup’s “current” and “future” lines have tended to move together over time — when Americans are feeling good about the present, they tend to feel optimistic about the future. But the most recent measures show that while current life satisfaction has declined over the last decade, future optimism has dropped even more.

The finding comes from a longstanding Gallup question that asks Americans to rate their current and future lives on a scale from 0 to 10. Those who give themselves an 8 or higher on the question about the future are categorized as optimists.

“While current life is eroding, it’s that optimism for the future that has eroded almost twice as much over the course of about that last 10 years or so,” said Dan Witters, the research director of the Gallup National Health and Well-Being Index.

Gallup assesses people who rate their current life at a 7 or higher and their anticipated future at an 8 or higher as “thriving.” Fewer than half of Americans, about 48%, are now in that category.

Democrats and Hispanic Americans, in particular, were in a darker mood last year. But even with President Donald Trump back in the White House and his party in control of both houses of Congress, Republicans aren’t feeling nearly as good about the future as they were in the last year of Trump’s first term.

Democrats’ optimism fell significantly

Americans’ attitudes toward the future tend to shift when a new political party enters the White House — generally, the party in power grows more optimistic, while the party without control is more down. For instance, Democrats became more positive about the future after Joe Biden won the presidency, while Republicans’ outlook soured.

Witters notes that these changes typically happen “by roughly the same amount, same level of magnitude, so they cancel each other out.”

That didn’t happen in 2025.

Toward the end of Biden’s term and the start of Trump’s second term, Democrats’ optimism fell from 65% to 57%. Republicans grew more hopeful, but not enough to offset Democrats’ drop.

“The regime change in the White House almost certainly was a big driving factor in what’s happened,” Witters said. “And a lot of that was just because the people who identified as Democrats really took it in the chops.”

But Republicans are still quite a bit gloomier about the future than they were in the last year of Trump’s first term. A January AP-NORC poll found that while the vast majority of Republicans are still behind the president, his work on the economy hasn’t lived up to many people’s expectations.

Hispanic adults grew more pessimistic

Hispanic adults’ optimism for the near future also declined during Trump’s first year in office, dropping from 69% to 63%.

That decrease was sharper than among white and Black Americans, something that Witters said could be tied to overall cost concerns, health care worries or alarm about Trump’s recent immigration policies.

Last year, a survey by the American Communities Project found that people living in heavily Hispanic areas were feeling less hopeful about their future than in 2024. Trump’s favorability fell among Hispanics over the course of 2025, according to AP-NORC polling, which also found that Hispanic adults reported higher levels of economic stress than other groups.

A Pew Research Center poll conducted in October found that the administration’s tough immigration enforcement is highly visible in Hispanic communities. About 6 in 10 Latinos said they had seen or heard of Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids or arrests in their community in the past six months.

“(Deportations are) something that everybody can see and look at with their own eyes,” Witters added. “But if you’re Hispanic, I think it’s fair to think that that might hit a little closer to home.”

This data is a part of the Gallup National Health and Well-Being Index. The 2025 results are based on data collected over four quarterly measurement periods, totaling 22,125 interviews with U.S. adults who are part of the probability-based Gallup Panel.

I couldn’t stop blinking back tears, and I couldn’t understand why.

I’d just walked out of a movie called “The Testament of Ann Lee.” Lee was the founder of the American Shakers, a tiny utopian Christian sect that started in England in the mid-18th century. Lee brought a small band of followers to the United States shortly before the Revolution.

The Shakers were known for their ecstatic worship (hence the name), their egalitarianism and pacifism, their absolute commitment to celibacy and their furniture. Shakers committed themselves to excellence in all things, and their craftsmanship was impeccable.

I’m not exactly the target audience for a film about chair-making religious extremists. I’m more the kind of moviegoer who’s drawn to Will Ferrell or light sabers or dragons. Also orcs. I find great meaning in superhero movies. But my wife and son were going, and I wanted to hang out with them.

So I went, a bit skeptically, hoping that perhaps I might get to see a new trailer for Christopher Nolan’s upcoming adaptation of “The Odyssey.” But then the movie started, and it broke my heart.

A theology born of loss and persecution

Lee was born in Manchester, England, in 1736. As a young woman, she joined a group of religious dissenters that eventually became known as the “shaking Quakers.” When they worshipped they would sing and dance and often demonstrated physical manifestations of the Holy Spirit’s presence.

Lee’s theology was born of horrible trauma, deep loss and profound persecution. While living in Britain, she was arrested and imprisoned. She was pressured, by some accounts, into an arranged marriage. She lost four children. She turned to God for solace and comfort and made a radical commitment to celibacy, shunning any further sexual activity, including with her husband. She believed that sex — all sex — separated man from God.

Persecuted in England, she did what so many others did before — and have done since: She left everything behind but the smallest band of followers and sought freedom in the New World.

When she lands the film depicts her immediately witnessing America’s profound flaws. As soon as she gets to New York, she and her followers see a slave auction and shout “shame” at this obvious, grotesque violation of human dignity. After she settles in her new home, American colonial authorities imprison her after she refuses to swear allegiance to the patriot cause — as pacifists the Shakers would not take part in the conflict.

After the governor of New York, George Clinton, orders her release, she and her brother are brutally beaten by a local mob, and in the climactic scene of shock and horror, you can still hear the deep conviction and love of neighbor in her brother, as he begs his fellow Shakers not to resist the beating. “Do not fight back!” he shouts as the blows fall.

Patterns in our history

This movie isn’t a mere period piece. It takes you inside the Shaker faith in a way that’s unusual in American cinema. It portrays the faith so sympathetically and in a way that is so emotionally resonant that I completely understood why the Shakers would endure so much.

In one sense, you’ll look at various scenes in the movie and see something very weird. People moan in sorrow at their own sin. There’s an explosively joyful reaction to the experience of forgiveness. They worship with their voices and bodies, singing and dancing for hours on end. Yet in many ways these scenes of deep emotion are the most authentically real element of the movie.

I’ve been in places of ecstatic worship. I’ve seen people shake and tremble as they perceive the presence of God. I’ve seen how the experience of forgiveness — the idea that the creator of the universe loves you enough to give you eternal hope in spite of your worst and most horrible deeds — creates a sense of joy and relief that is difficult to describe.

But that joy and relief can also turn into dangerous zeal. As history demonstrates, this kind of encounter with the perceived presence of God can create a devotion to God that can rage out of control. The zeal for their faith turns into brutal intolerance of everyone else.

Much of American history follows this pattern. Early settlers often came to the colonies to secure their own religious freedom, not necessarily out of love for the freedom of others. And when they encountered religious differences in the New World, they could be just as intolerant as their oppressors in the Old.

In Ann Lee’s case, her radical faith, which mirrored Christ’s and the Apostle Paul’s commitment to singleness and celibacy, also manifested itself in radical love, both for people inside her community and outside it.

In essence, Lee and her followers turned to God and said — as so many believers have — I will do anything for you. And they heard God’s ancient answer to that declaration: Love thy neighbor. And your neighbor includes the enslaved Black man, and the white indentured servant who possessed so few rights, and the Native American who was slowly but surely being driven from his land.

‘Already and not yet’

When I was growing up in the evangelical church, I was taught an idea we called “already and not yet.” It means that Christ’s death and resurrection changed everything now — already. We can live with eternal hope, and he has established his church on earth. But the “not yet” means the best is yet to come, including Christ’s return and our own resurrection.

You see this in our nation as well. Ann Lee lived in the already and not yet of America. The Shakers did find a place. She did build a community. And in one of the movie’s most powerful moments, she expresses profound gratitude when she hears that Lord Cornwallis had surrendered to George Washington at Yorktown.

In the movie’s telling, her body was ruined by beatings. Her brother was dead at the hands of a mob. And yet she was still grateful. She had already built a community, but now there was also a not yet — a promise of true liberty and security.

Hours after the movie, I finally realized why I had tears in my eyes. In the final scene, you see Lee’s plain wooden casket sitting alone under a painting of a beautiful tree.

In that moment, you could clearly see the gap between American hope and American reality. And I was reminded once again of one of Washington’s favorite Bible verses, Micah 4:4 — “Everyone will sit under their own vine and under their own fig tree, and no one will make them afraid.” In his writings, Washington referred to it almost 50 times.

Washington referred to that verse most famously when writing to the Hebrew Congregation of Newport, Rhode Island. Assuring them of their liberty in this new nation, he wrote, “May the Children of the Stock of Abraham, who dwell in this land, continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other Inhabitants; while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.”

What a beautiful expression of American pluralism and religious tolerance. Our nation is not a place — it never will be a place — where we all agree with one another, much less look like one another, or even come from a common culture. But we can live together as neighbors so long as we recognize one another’s inherent dignity and worth.

I know full well that Washington himself embodied the already and not yet of America. The man who wrote those beautiful words owned slaves — men and women he did not plan to free until after his wife’s death. His virtue was real; so was his sin.

The tree is still alive

And so it is with this nation we love. In 250 years, the already of American liberty has expanded. We are a better and more decent nation than the one Ann Lee encountered. But as we see state brutality and state violence spill out across our streets, we know that we are not yet fulfilling the promise of the declaration.

Ann Lee died in 1784. When she was reportedly reinterred in the 1820s, she was found to have a fractured skull. It’s 2026 now, and we still see beatings in the streets. There are still too many caskets under the tree of liberty. But the tree is still alive, and it continues to grow. May we all sit securely in its shade one day.

David French writes a column for the New York Times.

Related Articles

Elizabeth Shackelford: What history tells us about fighting the repression we are seeing here

Stephen Mihm: ICE enforcement is echoing the Fugitive Slave Act

Commentary: Why Bondi chose a Missouri prosecutor for a Georgia election case

Noah Feldman: ICE isn’t just breaking the law. It’s trying to rewrite it.

David French: This is not a drill

Today is Tuesday, Feb. 10, the 41st day of 2026. There are 324 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Feb. 10, 1996, world chess champion Garry Kasparov lost the first game of a match in Philadelphia against an IBM computer dubbed “Deep Blue.” (Kasparov ended up winning the match, 4 games to 2; however, he was defeated by Deep Blue in a rematch the following year.)

Also on this date:

In 1763, the treaty ending the Seven Years’ War was signed in Paris, with France ceding its territory in Canada to Great Britain.

Related Articles

Judge blocks California’s ban on federal agents wearing masks but requires badges be clearly seen

The US has a new center in Texas to disperse sterile screwworm flies to block a parasite it spawns

Catherine O’Hara died from a pulmonary embolism. Cancer was the underlying cause

Person is shot in a high school in Maryland and a suspect is in custody, police say

Trump’s immigration crackdown is straining federal courts. Judges are raising the alarm

In 1936, Nazi Germany’s Reichstag passed a law investing the Gestapo secret police with absolute authority, exempt from any legal review.

In 1959, an F4-intensity tornado tore through the St. Louis area, killing 21 people and injuring 345.

In 1962, on the Glienicke Bridge connecting West Berlin and East Germany, the Soviet Union exchanged captured American U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers for Rudolf Abel, a Soviet spy held by the United States.

In 1967, the 25th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, dealing with presidential disability and succession, was adopted as Minnesota and Nevada ratified it.

In 1973, at least 40 workers were killed in an explosion and collapse of a large liquefied natural gas tank that was undergoing routine maintenance in the New York City borough of Staten Island.

In 1981, eight people were killed when a fire set by a busboy broke out at the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel.

In 2009, a U.S. commercial satellite and a defunct Russian satellite accidentally collided in orbit over Siberia, destroying both and creating a large debris field in space.

In 2018, a double-decker bus lost control and crashed in a Hong Kong suburb, killing 19 people and injuring dozens more in the southern Chinese city.

In 2021, severe winter storms caused catastrophic wide-scale power outages in Texas that left millions in the dark and lasted several days. At least 40 people died in Texas in the storm and its aftermath.

Today’s birthdays:

Opera singer Leontyne Price is 99.
Actor Robert Wagner is 96.
Olympic swimming gold medalist Mark Spitz is 76.
Golf Hall of Famer Greg Norman is 71.
Basketball Hall of Fame coach John Calipari is 67.
Filmmaker Alexander Payne is 65.
TV host-political commentator George Stephanopoulos is 65.
Actor Laura Dern is 59.
Writer-producer-director Vince Gilligan (TV: “Breaking Bad”) is 59.
Football Hall of Famer Ty Law is 52.
Actor-filmmaker Elizabeth Banks is 52.
Basketball Hall of Famer Tina Thompson is 51.
Reggaeton singer Don Omar is 48.
Actor Uzo Aduba is 45.
Actor Stephanie Beatriz is 45.
Actor Emma Roberts is 35.
Olympic swimming gold medalist Lilly King is 29.
Actor Chloe Grace Moretz is 29.
Actor Yara Shahidi is 26.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker stared up at the scoreboard and smiled Monday night as a tribute video played in his honor as the Timberwolves welcomed the guard back to Minnesota, now as a member of the Hawks.

Alexander-Walker seemed to be holding in some emotion as numerous highlights of his flashed across the screen before he was officially announced amid a standing ovation at Target Center in his honor.

Alexander-Walker noted it was “pretty cool” to see a tribute video dedicated to him. It’s an honor for anyone, but particularly a player with Alexander-Walker’s lack of stature. He wasn’t drafted by Minnesota. He spent just two and a half seasons with the organization. The guard is a self-defined “role player.”

Yet he received a hero’s welcome.

“It was just really cool, you know? You dream of those things as a kid, getting the tributes, getting the love from the fans, the standing ovations. Minnesota has been nothing short of amazing to me, from the organization to the city, everything,” he said after the game. “Honestly, watching (the video), it was hard not to smile and just appreciate it.”

In the same way he’s been appreciated by Minnesota ever since he busted onto the scene during the 2023 postseason. Alexander-Walker noted significant tributes are often saved for folks who defined a team’s culture. But, in many ways, that’s what he did in Minnesota.

His effort, defensive tenacity and positive attitude were some of the primary building blocks for both of the Timberwolves’ two most recent Western Conference Finals runs, and everyone recognized it. Maybe more than even Alexander-Walker knew. It was undeniable to the naked eye Monday, from the fans in Alexander-Walker’s No. 9 jersey to those who lit up at the first sight of him exiting the Hawks’ team hotel.

Alexander-Walker described his entire return to Minnesota as “pretty amazing.”

“To me, I didn’t think (my presence) was as substantial as they made it to seem,” he said. “I was excited to come back, but the love that I got from the moment that I was a part of that trade (with Utah in 2023) in the last minute to when I had to leave, honestly, I have so much love for Minnesota and the fans, and I want to personally thank everybody for that, as well.”

It’s what drives him.

“The small things like that really make the work you put in,” he said. “As you go along, when you have days where you go 3 for 15 and it’s like, ‘Man, I can’t hit a shot’ or ‘My body is hurting, why do I do this stuff?’ It’s just because there’s people that really appreciate the work you put in.”

Alexander-Walker was excellent even in defeat Monday, finishing with 23 points, 12 rebounds and five assists in Minnesota’s runaway victory.

With the Hawks down 31 in the third quarter, it was Alexander-Walker’s energy that brought Atlanta back to within 16 before Minnesota finally closed the door.

Typical Alexander-Walker — playing hard to the final buzzer. He believes in doing so every time you step onto the floor.

“These things don’t really belong to us. They’re not like a birthright, you know what I’m saying?” he said. “It’s like you earn it and it’s a privilege to be here, it’s a privilege to have this opportunity, and just making the most out of it.”

That, on top of his magnetic personality, are why fans and teammates alike adore the guard. Signed Timberwolves jerseys continued to pile on top of his chair in Atlanta’s locker room after the game.

Alexander-Walker and Anthony Edwards swapped jerseys on the court at the conclusion of Monday’s contest. He estimated he’d have six or seven of his former teammate’s jerseys by night’s end.

Well after the game had ended, Alexander-Walker roamed the halls of Target Center as he connected with former teammates and staff members, greeting each with a smile and one of his patented handshakes.

This was a piece of his family. And he was home.

“All these guys are my brothers. The relationships we have, no matter the personality, all of us just meshed well,” Alexander-Walker said. “We all got along, we were all cool, all cracked jokes and we all went through the same struggles together. I think that’s made us closer. We all related on certain things and we were there to big each other up. Naz had my back when I’d be frustrated, I’d have Jaden’s back a lot. We were there to pick each other up at times, so that’s why I think stuff like this kind of shows up.”

Related Articles

Timberwolves get back on track with win over Hawks

Timberwolves embarrassed on national television by Clippers

Rudy Gobert suggests Timberwolves be benched for effort. Maybe Ayo Dosunmu is an easier fix

Timberwolves fall at home to lowly Pelicans

Timberwolves, Mike Conley in line for reunion … eventually