A Bloomberg/Los Angeles Times poll found that 76 percent of Americans think the government should do something to halt the falling dollar. Among those with incomes of $100,000 or more, seven in 10 favored aiding the currency, putting pressure on Paulson, who's charged with setting the policy, to match his ``strong dollar'' rhetoric with action.

The U.S. currency has slumped 41 percent against the euro since 2002 and 13 percent in the past 12 months alone. That has contributed to a surge in energy and commodity prices to record levels, and prompted central banks to reduce their share of foreign exchange reserves in dollars.