From Holden:

Looks like My Bush Boom is in a persistent vegetative state, as consumer confidence falls at a rate 354% greater than analysts had anticipated .

U.S. consumers felt less secure in the economy‘s strength in April as gasoline prices soared, reinforcing nascent concerns that growth in the United States may be on the brink of a slowdown. The University of Michigan said its measure of confidence slid to 88.7 so far this month from 92.6 in March, according to market sources who saw the subscription-only report. Analysts had forecast a more modest dip to 91.5.

At the heart of the decline in confidence, said analysts, were worsening economic conditions due to record prices at the gasoline pump — a tough break for a nation as reliant on cars as the United States.