Poll finds disapproval of Congress at all-time high Many voters are untrusting of the government since the debt-crisis
WASHINGTON — Americans are plenty angry at Congress in the aftermath of the debt crisis and Republicans could pay the greatest price, a new Associated Press-GfK poll suggests.
The poll finds the tea party has lost support, Republican House Speaker John Boehner is increasingly unpopular and people are warming to the idea of not just cutting spending but also raising taxes — anathema to the GOP — just as both parties prepare for another struggle with deficit reduction.
The results point to a chilly autumn in Washington as the divided Congress returns to the same fiscal issues that almost halted other legislative business and are certain to influence the struggle for power in the 2012 elections. They suggest that politicians, regardless of party, have little to gain by prolonging the nation's most consequential policy debate. And they highlight the gap between the wider public's wishes now and the tea party's cut-it-or-shut-it philosophy that helped propel Republicans into the House majority last year.
The survey, conducted Aug. 18-22, found that approval of Congress has dropped to its lowest level in AP-GfK polling — 12 percent. That's down from 21 percent in June, before the debt deal reached fever pitch.
The tea party, too, took a hit, according to the poll. Unfavorable views of the tea party have climbed 10 percentage points since November, when they fueled the Republican resurgence. Of those, 32 percent have a deeply unfavorable impression of the movement and just a quarter of respondents say they consider themselves supporters of the tea party — the lowest in AP-GfK polling and a dip of 8 percentage points since June.
Overall, 87 percent disapproved of Congress' performance. Entrenched partisanship explained some of the discontent.
lol The current popularity of "throw out the bums" might lead to Congress going back to the Dems in 2012 and Obama losing the White House. Seems to be little patience with politicians these days. Reminds me of Italy and Japan who seem to get a new goverment & Prime Minister every year.
Thomas Sowell: There are no solutions, just trade-offs.
:Whistle Plus there is always the paradox that people hate Congress but love their Congressman. Even in these heady days, expect 90% to be re-elected, even those in legal trouble like Rangel.
Thomas Sowell: There are no solutions, just trade-offs.
SS109 wrote: lol The current popularity of "throw out the bums" might lead to Congress going back to the Dems in 2012 and Obama losing the White House. Seems to be little patience with politicians these days. Reminds me of Italy and Japan who seem to get a new goverment & Prime Minister every year.
It'll be interesting to see what happens. Many years the general consensus seems to be "throw out the bums....except for my guy - he's okay". And so of course there are no sweeping changes to speak of. This year I'm hearing more of "my guy sucks, too!".
Has the tea party peaked? Republican lawmakers affiliated with the upstart anti-tax movement scored big in the nerve-wracking debt-ceiling debacle, but the victory left enough hard feelings to feed the movement's ultimate downfall.
To quote an old Chicago White Sox slogan from the 1980s, their achievement was a case of "winning ugly."
With the nation's credit rating in the balance, they seized the normally routine matter of raising the nation's debt ceiling and held it hostage, gangsta-style: Cut government spending our way, they reasoned, and nobody gets hurt
Disappointment. Polls indicate growing numbers of the public think the tea partiers have become part of the problem they came to Washington to cure.
Fully 82 percent of Americans disapprove of Congress' performance in the hard-fought debt-limit debate, according to a New York Times/CBS News poll. People love to hate Congress, even when they like their own congressman. But this was Congress' highest disapproval rating, the pollsters said, since they began asking the question in 1977.
And public disapproval of the "tea party" doubled to 40 percent from 18 percent when that question was first asked in April 2010.
Four out of five respondents said they thought the debacle was more about gaining political ground than advancing the nation's interests. On that score, Congress is lucky that pollsters found any approval at all outside of the lawmakers' immediate families.
Forty-seven percent blamed congressional Republicans for the standoff while only 29 percent blamed President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats. Twenty percent blamed both sides.
Dangerous disregard.Even fellow conservatives are beginning to speak out against the frightening radical ax with which tea party folks want to take a wide swing at government spending. "Don't call them conservatives," fumed conservative Hal Gordon, who wrote speeches for the Ronald Reagan White House and for Colin Powell, in a blog post. "Call them Banana Republicans if you like — or Republicans-Gone-Bananas."
Grass-roots movements are like bees, an old saying goes, they sting and then they die. The tea party, like the original Boston Tea Party, fits what the founders called a movement of the moment. Like others, the teas are likely to melt, at best, into one of the major parties.
In the meantime, they can stir up a lot of mischief, even for those who otherwise want to be their allies.
I read the other day that this time 51% of voters "hate their own congressman"... The assumption that that will keep the teabaggers in office is an assumption I hope you continue to make...
Republicans inherited the disapproval ratings from the Democrats. rofllol The sucked so bad when they were in control of Congress....they can go where but up. Especially since Obama has them at the back of bus.
residenttroll wrote: Republicans inherited the disapproval ratings from the Democrats. rofllol The sucked so bad when they were in control of Congress....they can go where but up. Especially since Obama has them at the back of bus.
Nice try, but the congressional approval rating has been dropping like a rock since the Tea Party Republicans showed up in Congress. Back in 2009 and 2010, their ratings tended to be in the 20-35% range.....now with the Republicans wreaking havoc in DC it's dropped to the 10-14% range......yep, Americans are waking up and smelling the stench from the rotten tea.
Well, duh, that's what happens when you inherit a mess right? You can't expect things to get better in 8 short months, we're still seeing the negative impacts of the previous administration at this point. Maybe those who are so upset should grab a mop rather than complain they don't like the way the current Congress is mopping up the mess the last one left.
Did I miss any of the Obama cliches along the way?
