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More than half of U.S. small-business owners say healthcare costs and taxes are hurting their businesses "a lot," more than say the same about six other issues tested in a January Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business survey.

Americans' concerns about the federal budget deficit and government dysfunction rose high enough in January to knock unemployment out of the top two slots on Gallup's "most important problem" list for the first time since 2009.

More than three-quarters of Americans (77%) say the way politics works in Washington these days is causing serious harm to the United States, still another indicator of the low esteem in which Americans hold their government.

Majorities of Americans believe the U.S. eclipses other industrialized countries when it comes to the freedoms, quality of life, and opportunities its residents enjoy. But most say the U.S. economic and healthcare systems trail behind others'.

Americans' self-reported daily spending was $83 per day in December, up from $73 in November and the highest monthly average Gallup has reported since December 2008. Spending was up among higher- and lower-income Americans.

U.S. small-business owners' net hiring intentions for the next 12 months plunged to -4 in November, matching the lowest level recorded by the Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index. The previous low was also -4 in November 2008.

Net hiring in the U.S. averaged +18 in November, similar to the range seen since July. Despite this broad stability, private-sector employment has waned, while state and local government hiring has picked up.

U.S. small-business owners are pessimistic post-election, with the Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index plunging to -11 in November from 17 in July. Owners' optimism about business conditions in the year ahead has decreased the most.

One in four Americans (24%) say it is a good time to find a quality job, up sharply from 8% a year ago to the most positive perceptions since March 2008. Recent improvements coincide with upticks in economic confidence and job creation.

Despite all the hype, self-reported U.S. consumer spending averaged $67 per day in the week ending Nov. 25, down from $83 a year ago. Daily spending over the three-day Black Friday weekend averaged $84, compared with $103 a year ago.