NBC/WSJ poll: Approval of Congress hits bottom

[Jamie B]

http://firstread.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/21/13396651-nbcwsj-poll-approval-of-congress-hits-bottom?lite

12% of voters surveyed approve of Congress' work
82% of voters surveyed disapprove of Congress' work

36% view the Rep Party as positive
45% view the Rep party negative

42% view the Dem Party as positive
40% view the Dem party as negative

I find the Congressional information interesting.

Note that 1,000 voters were surveyed, so we have the normal extrapolation to the population.

[zxcvbob]

It can always go lower.  (I learned that in the stock market)

[Angel Eyes]

It can always go lower.  (I learned that in the stock market)

Yup.  If it's > 0, it hasn't hit bottom.

[Ron]

In the MSM the underlying premise or assumption is that the numbers are low because the house and senate haven't been productive, ie done something.

My "progressive" coworkers and I may both give congress poor marks if polled but for dramatically different reasons.

Many like I may very well be disappointed the '10 elections bore such poor results in policy.

On the good days I feel Obama and the Dems are in for a shellacking this fall. Then I interact with actual humans in the real flesh world and realize we're doomed  

  

[Blakenzy]

I bet they are still going to keep their jobs.

[Nick1911]

I agree with Ron.

[MechAg94]

Who are these 12% of people that approve?

[HankB]

Who are these 12% of people that approve?

Congressional staffers and the ones who are happy with their current welfare benefits, Federal pensions, or phoney baloney Federal jobs.

[longeyes]

They don't like Congress, but they love The System.  Is Obama something other than a product of Congress?  Maybe I missed something there. 

Too many Americans would, if they had the chance, behave no differently than the Congresscritters they contemn.

[Tallpine]

They don't like Congress, but they love The System.  Is Obama something other than a product of Congress?  Maybe I missed something there. 

Too many Americans would, if they had the chance, behave no differently than the Congresscritters they contemn.

I would vote NO on everything except the occasional repeal of a previous law, and spend the rest of my time on vacation 

[MechAg94]

Congressional staffers and the ones who are happy with their current welfare benefits, Federal pensions, or phoney baloney Federal jobs.

I forget.  12% is probably Govt employees and their families.  That may even be low.

[MicroBalrog]

A Congressman represents his district... but the views of people in his district are different from views elsewhere.

It's technically possible to have a man who lives in, say, a very left-wing district in MA, approves greatly of his Democrat Congressman - whom he voted for - and a Texan who approves greatly of his conservative Republican Congressman - and both of them disapprove of the activities of Congress as a whole. Yet come election day, both of them will vote to re-elect their respective incumbent.

[HankB]

A Congressman represents his district... but the views of people in his district are different from views elsewhere.

It's technically possible to have a man who lives in, say, a very left-wing district in MA, approves greatly of his Democrat Congressman - whom he voted for - and a Texan who approves greatly of his conservative Republican Congressman - and both of them disapprove of the activities of Congress as a whole. Yet come election day, both of them will vote to re-elect their respective incumbent.

Yep. I doubt that many of Ron Paul's most enthusiastic supporters - those in his district - have much approval of congress, even though the guy they love keeps getting elected to the House.

And . . . a person who holds his nose and votes against the candidate he thinks is worse (as opposed to voting for someone he really likes, since there's nobody like that on the ballot) is unlikely to be happy with the outcome even when the guy he voted against loses.

[Tallpine]

You can vote for somebody you like maybe 60% versus somebody you like maybe 10%

[slingshot]

I have been very irratated that B. Obama does not lead.  He puts Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid in charge of leading and hence can simply complain about the gridlock.  The President IS responsible.  I just wish that 90% of black voters understood that.  He thinks about Congress from the bottom up just like he thinks about the economy.

[Tallpine]

Obama does not lead.

The trouble is that he is leading the wrong direction. 

Not that LOTE* is much better. 


* Lessor Of Two Evils

[TommyGunn]

You can vote for somebody you like maybe 60% versus somebody you like maybe 10%

  Are you sure you meant to say this? 

[Blakenzy]

You can't say it has hit bottom until you see strange fruit hanging on Capitol Hill.

But considering the LOTE* paradigm of thought dominating the electorate's minds, I don't see that happening ever...never ever.

Ah, good ol' LOTE... This time it will save the Republic!

[lee n. field]

You can't say it has hit bottom until you see strange fruit hanging on Capitol Hill.

Not sure what you mean by that phrase.

[Blakenzy]

Not sure what you mean by that phrase.

"Strange fruit hanging from trees" it's an allusion to lynched bodies (from a 1930s song)...

I meant that as low as their approval is now, it can most likely go lower. I'd wait till I see angry mobs gathering around Congress with violent retribution in mind before declaring it has hit bottom.

[Fitz]

I forget.  12% is probably Govt employees and their families.  That may even be low.

I know plenty of Govvies who are not happy at all

[dogmush]

* Raises hand.

But don't let me stand in the way of your broad brush.

[longeyes]

We have plenty of "leadership" in this country.  The problem is that leadership does not inhere in the people we elect or, for that matter, the people we know.  We didn't get to the manifest problesm of 2012 without plenty of people actively and effectively steering this course.  The myth is that we have representative government.