It looks like the residuals may be associated with stock and bond market returns. Is that in your model? I would also be curious about the effects of mortgage rates and home prices -- the usefulness of the "home equity ATM" effect that we know influences consumer spending. Are these factors included in your sentiment model? It also seems possible that these factors would affect Republicans and Democrats differently, although unlikely to change your conclusions.
Asymmetric amplification and the consumer sentiment gap
Really interesting research.
It looks like the residuals may be associated with stock and bond market returns. Is that in your model? I would also be curious about the effects of mortgage rates and home prices -- the usefulness of the "home equity ATM" effect that we know influences consumer spending. Are these factors included in your sentiment model? It also seems possible that these factors would affect Republicans and Democrats differently, although unlikely to change your conclusions.