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Congress’ job approval is still at an abysmal 12 percent with 82 percent of the country disapproving of its job performance, according to Gallup. While technically this is better than Congress’ all time low of just 10 percent reached back in August, a few points is really just a minor fluctuation.
What I do find interesting is why Congress’ approval rating is so low this year. Mainly it is because all partisan groups now equally disdain the body. Both the Democratic and the Republican base give Congress equal poor job approval numbers. From Gallup:
Obviously the state of the economy plays a big role, but who controls Congress is clearly important. Over the past two decades when Republican controlled Congress the Republican base’s opinion of Congress was higher. Similarly, for the brief period of time when Democrats gained full control of Congress, approval from the Democratic base shot up. Now that the two chambers of Congress are evenly divided and often fighting, support for Congress has tanked among all partisan groups.
I think that nicely counters the often stated claim that the American people want divided government. We currently have perfectly divided government, Americans of all strips roundly hate it. Divided government is not making some mythical center happy, it just disappoints everyone. Apparently what is worse than only one side getting their way is nothing getting done at all.
I would say this chart makes a very strong case for why most democracies should adopt a parliamentary system. When elections are actually decisive at least a large part of the electorate tends to be pleased with the resulting government.
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You know, maybe I’m a simpleton but this seems pretty straightforward to me: when Congress, the President and the DC Bubble repeatedly defy and ignore the American People this is the result. On issue after issue the American People have declared support for Progressive solutions — public option, ending the wars, taxing the Rich, protecting the social safety net — yet the DC Bubble dismisses these policy approached out of hand. It is going to take something dramatic before there is any real change because the powerful never cede power voluntarily. We the American People myst TAKE power by rejecting the political duopoly that is strangling the nation, serving the 1%, and crushing the American People.
By design of the Founders, they wanted gridlock to keep “bad” legislation from occurring, from being enacted based on the latest polls rather than deliberate and exhaustive input.
So called ObamaCare, sweeping, expensive and broad, was passed with less than a day’s worth of actual debate, and though you might support the law there could come a time when something you don’t support is passed with equal carelessness.
The intent of the Founders was a bit more complicated than that! It is true that they intended legislation to crawl along, allowing ample opportunity to rethink throughout the process. But “Gridlock” is a purely partisan feature, which was uncommon until some party started using the tactic, losing sight of any and all compromise, simply to deprive the victors of any spoils whatsoever. Sound familiar?
The Founders placed (misplaced) trust in assuming that intelligent, thoughtful adults would populate the halls of Congress. Oops. Madison would be surely be appalled with the scorched earth tactics being used to obstruct!
A great outline of the Founders correspondence and speeches during the Constitutional Convention through the creation of the Bill of Rights can be found in the “People’s History of the Supreme Court”. The “horsetrading” between the 13 States was interesting, both intent and later consequences. As you know, there was not a single tradesman, lesser merchant or small farmer among them. The aristocratic wealthy put the system together for their own benefit.
When corporations control congress as Jefferson feared We the people get the shit end of the stick. Slavery divided a nation, ultimately leading to civil war. American history manifests the results of dysfunctional congressional behavior that protects the the economic interests of “monied interests,” to the detriment of the many. No wonder why congress’s approval rating is in the Walter J. Crapper. Now all Americans can experience the realities of their live’s being subject to the dictates of corporations who use the money “extracted” from the governed, to buy law thereby protecting business models which rape the republic, just as slaves where exploited for energy!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slave_Power
Slaves exploited for their uncompensated toils/energy and Americans get to waste .80 cents of every dollar spent on gasoline? No servitude here folks?????
Excellent post as usual.
NOw…..can we take those feelings to the polls in November. WE ARE the 99%, and although we don’t have the money, we have the numbers.
Red, blue, black, white, red, brown and , yes, even orange, we are ALL in the SAME boat. If we do not hang together we shall certainly hang seperately. Now, let’s go win one for the Gipper.
“When corporations control congress as Jefferson feared….”
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Lots of people didn’t like his show, but George Jefferson was one really smart, progressive dude for his time.
“The aristocratic wealthy put the system together for their own benefit.”
Sure did! Ask Dred Scott. Now we know why Jefferson wanted to “… crush forever aristocracy…”
“I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations which dare already to challenge our government to a trial by strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country.”
Thomas Jefferson
Now the “monied interests” write then buy law. Citizens United and Dred Scott vs Sanford have much in common!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Times
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jeffersons
Dynomite!
Thanks. And there is one issue I forgot to mention that is near and dear to Jon Walker (and myself): marijuana legalization. Even on this simple, common sense, win-win, consensus issue the DC Bubble simply ignores the American People. It has to end.
The irony is most incumbents will be reelected despite the fact Congress as a whole is despised.
How naive it is to think we live in a democracy. We may have at one time but when you have corporations writing the laws on both the federal and state level, we no longer have anything that resembles democracy that we are “exporting” around the world instead of the real reasons which is oil.
Wouldn’t it be great if 80% of the people voted this year and voted everyone out so we could start with a clean slate!
No, the Founders designed the Constitution to prevent an artisan-radical movement from ever attaining power. It’s proved admirably durable in keeping a labor-social democratic movement from gaining critical mass as well. We really can’t afford to blame this on the fecklessness or corruption of a few individuals. The system is working precisely as it was designed.