Job Approval Rating

[bolverk]

As the Presidents approval rating climbs, the approval rating for congress declines. 16% for Congress, 30% for Bush. Go figure.

[subdjoe]

The really sad thing is that just about every memeber of Congress who stands for reelection will be put back into office. And I put the blame squarely on the electorate for that.

[saunterelle]

Congress' approval rating is always low. The President's, however, is very telling.

[Mink]

30%, on his own, very impressive

16%, a not so majority, tells the same story as the last 6 years

[bolverk]

The approval rating for congress has not been traditionally been so low. When you consider that the real seat of power is not in the Presidency where the country is concerned, you begin to understand why the approval rating of congress has plummeted so rapidly since the election.

As much as the Democrats in congress want the people to believe that the economic problems in this country are the fault of the President, the people seem to be intelligent enough to understand that it is truly the responsibility of congress.

The loudest voices in congress right now are democrat, at least while not on vacation. Maybe their popularity is dropping because some members of congress really do want a comprehensive energy bill to help the people, and so stayed to show their conviction. Since the democrats have collectively told the people they are not so important, by not allowing the bill to come to a vote and allowing the other side of the isle to add amendments, perhaps the people are taking notice and it is reflected in their popularity.

One would hope that is the case, since congress is far more powerful then the executive office. Maybe will see an end to the type of apologetic posts like the two above mine, as people come to realize who is really responsible for their woes, congress.

[saunterelle]

Actually, if you look at the data you will see that both Democrats and Republicans in congress have low ratings. The idea that congress' approval rating is suddenly low because of something the Democrats did is ludicrous.

Here are the job approval ratings for congress: www.pollingreport.com/CongJob.htm

Here they are for Democrats in congress:
www.pollingreport.com/cong_dem.htm

And here they are for Republicans in congress:
www.pollingreport.com/cong_rep.htm

I want to point out that since 1997 the only time the Republicans in congress have had an approval rating over 50% was for a three week period in 2001 and a one week period in 2003.

[bolverk]

Actually, I have been following their approval ratings for some time now. Where you aware that the highest approval ratings congress ever received were during the Republican majorities? Probably not. Were you also aware that the lowest approval ratings came at times when there were Democrat Majorities? Probably not.

You can try and spin it anyway you want. This is the most unpopular congress in history, regardless of who is in the majority. And, the slip began after the Democrats won the elections on lofty promises they knew they could not keep. There was a slight peak right after the elections, but when reality set in that they Democrats were not going to do anything but maintain the status quo, approval ratings began to fall.

And, the energy crisis has added to their fall. But, you can attribute that to the short sightedness of the leadership in the Democratic side of the House. Pelosi does not know anything about the people she serves, and it shows. That is why she did not let a bill come to a vote, to prevent any amendments by Republicans at a time when Obama was vulnerable on the Energy issue. In other words, she is playing politics with our lives.

As far as the approval ratings of Congress during 9/11, it was at 84%. Also, during the Republican majorities, approval ratings were at an all time high, since ratings have been kept. The lowest being 45% and the highest 84%, with many in the 50% range over an eight year period. Explain that.



Yep, all those years from 1974 through 1996 were Democrat majorities in Congress, and not one ever reached 50% approval ratings. That only happened when Conservatives were the majority. I wonder why that is?

And by the way, the current 16% rating for Congress is not shown on this chart.

[crossride]

Low congessional approval ratings? I know why. Its because both parties are full of crap, that's why. Until they both actually do the job they are supposed to do instead of pandering to lobbyists and special intersts, working towards re-election, and toeing the partylines, approval rating will be low. Maybe part of the problem is that the congress is doing the same thing I see in this very forum. Its "their" fault, not ours. How can anyone ever get anything accomplished when they have to spend so much time blaming the other side for the problems they are ALL responsible for?

Based on the chart above, approval ratings have spiked above 58% only ONE TIME since 1974??? Any member of congress with a conscience should be resigning since its clear they are not doing their jobs. And a self respecting resignation saves us from ourselves... we the people... who keep re-electing them.

[bolverk]

Crossride, I agree on some of what you say, though you over simplify it some. We all have special interests. And a lobbyist is any person who lobbies congress for what ever reasons. Also, the very nature of congress will pretty much guarantee approval ratings that are lower then 58%, because you can not get 58% of people to agree on much.

However, excluding 9/11, congress meet with it's highest approval rating during the last five or six years of the Clinton Administration and and during the first term of the Bush Administration. Like it or not, those congresses were Republican Majorities for the first time in nearly 25 years, with some very small exceptions.

What we need to ask ourselves is not what we are doing wrong now, but what was being done right then. I can remember feeling empowered during the first Republican majority, when Clinton screwed America on his tax promises. A distinct plan was laid out for all to see, and feel they could be part of. It was called the Contract with America, most of which passed and resulted in positive growth. And even if you did not agree with that plan, most people did, and it resulted in higher approval ratings. That is what is missing now, a comprehensive plan Americans can understand. And it is not likely we will see one with the current congress either.

[Mink]

Aug 20, 2008 16:13:22 GMT -5 crossride said:

Low congessional approval ratings? I know why. Its because both parties are full of crap, that's why. Until they both actually do the job they are supposed to do instead of pandering to lobbyists and special intersts, working towards re-election, and toeing the partylines, approval rating will be low. Maybe part of the problem is that the congress is doing the same thing I see in this very forum. Its "their" fault, not ours. How can anyone ever get anything accomplished when they have to spend so much time blaming the other side for the problems they are ALL responsible for?


Based on the chart above, approval ratings have spiked above 58% only ONE TIME since 1974??? Any member of congress with a conscience should be resigning since its clear they are not doing their jobs. And a self respecting resignation saves us from ourselves... we the people... who keep re-electing them.

Very well said crossride!

[surefire]

I agree with crossride and Mink.

Both parties are full of it.

It is sad that we are forced to vote for the least worst, rather than the best.

[bolverk]

First, and foremost, you have to get people in this country to agree on something, so even if you had the best Congress in history, I doubt that their approval rating would maintain a constant rate higher then 58%.

Second, the people of Michigan, Virginia and Florida have different ideas of what they approve of then our State of California. So that is going to drive down the approval rating.

Third, if Congress has an approval rating greater then 50%, I would have to say they are doing a pretty good job. After all, that would mean that over 150 million people approve out of more then 300 million. Heck, our next President will likely get elected by less then 50% of the vote.

Americans don't always see eye to eye, and that is one of the great things about this country. So, taking an approval rating up 37 points from the first all time low of 18% to 55% is pretty darn good. In fact, congress maintained a better then average rating for the entire time it was controlled by Conservatives. The highest rating in the previous two decades was 42%, and that was during Reagan's tenure.

So, when you look at job approval ratings, you should not expect to see extremely high numbers, as so many people are partisan in their approach. Again, I say we should look at the more appealing years of Congress and find out why people like them so much. Saying both parties are full of it is not a positive way to address the situation we are currently in, with a Congressional approval rating at 16% and dropping.