Woman Records Very Creepy Visit by the FBI
Joe Biden Is Hitting His Political 'Life Alert' Button With This 2024 Move
South Carolina's Mysterious Bank Account That Has Over $1 Billion in It
Occupied Gaza
Go Touch Some Grass
Biden Administration Locking Up Public Lands from West to East
Jon Stewart, the Tribeca Trickster of Real Estate
Only Democrats Get to Lie on NBC News
Donald Trump: The Non-PC Candidate
Ronald Reagan: The Man Who Cut Taxes From 70 to 28 Percent
Republicans Thwart Democrat Scheme to Raise Gas Prices
The Future Looks...Old?
Not Exactly Something Normal
Senate Judiciary Committee Should Prioritize Main Street Over Wall Street with Free Market...
Some Unpleasant Truths About Islam and the West
Tipsheet

Poll: Congress' Approval Rating Hits New Low...Again

I’m tired of writing these kinds of posts, but they are instructive:

 photo Congress1_zps08cb0268.png

PRINCETON, NJ -- Americans' approval of the way Congress is handling its job has dropped to 9%, the lowest in Gallup's 39-year history of asking the question. The previous low point was 10%, registered twice in 2012.

Advertisement

By a hair, Congressional Democrats’ job approval rating is actually higher than Congressional Republicans’. Amazing work, guys.

 photo Congress2_zps63f68a07.png

Divided government is as old as the republic, but there’s something about this Congress, in particular, that Americans loathe. What is it? On the Left, progressives would say that Tea Party “extremists” have essentially hijacked the government, creating a climate of hate and intimidation making it virtually impossible for the president and his supporters to govern effectively. This kind of partisanship is unprecedented, they tell us. On the Right, however, conservatives would say that deeply unpopular legislation passed by the federal Congress (albeit on a straight party vote) is ruining people’s lives, and there’s not much they, as citizens, can do about it. People want to be left alone, and yet the government is imposing all sorts of mandates, taxes and regulations on individuals and families which, in turn, are eroding their God-given freedoms. Both sides are unhappy with the status quo, as they should be.

Advertisement

That being said, I’m not convinced this is the most polarized and divided the nation has ever been, Congress’s historically low approval ratings notwithstanding. Don't forget, the days of the early republic (starting, say, with the Constitutional Convention in 1787 and ending with the presidential election of 1800)— and the Civil War — were times of immense rancor and disagreement. Are we really to believe, then, that the year 2013 is the most partisan in our nation’s history? Please. One problem today is that there is a “crisis of confidence” in Washington and Americans don’t trust their government. Restore trust in government institutions, and perhaps Congress’s low approval rating will take care of itself.

Join the conversation as a VIP Member

Recommended

Trending on Townhall Videos

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement