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Meanwhile, 48 percent of voters say Republicans are responsible for partisan gridlock holding up a deal on the federal budget. By contrast, a third of those surveyed blame the president and 11 percent of voters say neither party is responsible.

But the poll also found a number of discouraging signs for the White House. A majority of voters — 56 percent — say they disapprove of the way President Obama is handling budget negotiations with Congress. Nearly one in four Democrats say they're disappointed, as do more than six in 10 independents.

Moreover, four in 10 voters now say the sequester has had no effect on the economy — an indication that the president has not been effective in his campaign to rally the country against the $85 billion in across-the-board cuts and intensify pressure on Republicans. On Wednesday, the White House said Obama would take a 5 percent pay cut in solidarity with federal workers.

“There are no winners when it comes to the budget battles in Washington,” said Lee M. Miringoff, director of The Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, in a statement.