Rassmussen Reports - As members of Congress and the president haggle over ways to reduce the federal budget deficit, ratings for the bicameral legislature have fallen to the lowest level since late 2008.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely Voters shows that nine percent (9%) now say Congress is doing a good or excellent job. Fifty-six percent (56%) rate the Congressional performance as poor. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
Positive grades for the legislators are down from 13% last month and are the lowest measured since December 2008. The number of voters who give Congress a poor grade is up seven points from last month and is the highest negative review since Republicans took control of the House in January.
From January 2007 through December 2010, with Democrats in control of both the House and Senate, the legislature earned good or excellent marks ranging from 9% to 26%. The high water mark was reached in May 2007. Poor marks for the Democratic tenure ranged from a low of 35% to a high of 71%. That 71% negative rating was reached just before the health care bill became law.
In the four months since Republicans took control of the House, positive ratings for Congress have ranged from nine percent (9%) to 15%, while poor marks have run from 42% to 56%. Democrats continue to control the Senate.
Only 11% of Republican voters believe Congress is doing a good or excellent job, as do 11% of Democrats. Just six percent (6%) of voters not affiliated with either major party give Congress positive marks.
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on April 19-20, 2011 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
Just 17% believe Congress has passed legislation in the past year that will significantly improve life in America, down from 21% last month and the lowest finding since February 2010. Sixty-one percent (61%) say Congress has not passed such legislation, while 21% more are not sure.
But voters are a bit more divided on the goals of Congress. While 47% say the more important role for Congress is passing good legislation, 43% say top priority should be preventing bad legislation from becoming law. That’s the smallest gap since Rasmussen Reports first posed the question in August of last year.
Republicans continue hold a modest lead over Democrats on the Generic Congressional Ballot.
In the ongoing budget-cutting debate in Washington, some congressional Democrats have accused their Republican opponents of being held captive by the Tea Party movement, but voters like the Tea Party more than Congress.
Voters continue to view the Republican agenda in Congress as more mainstream than the agenda of the Democrats. But only one-in-four voters think the average member of either party shares the same ideology they do.
Most voters feel the president and Republicans in Congress are unlikely to agree on major spending cuts before next year’s elections. They also aren't confident either side will come up with a serious plan to begin with.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely Voters shows that nine percent (9%) now say Congress is doing a good or excellent job. Fifty-six percent (56%) rate the Congressional performance as poor. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
Positive grades for the legislators are down from 13% last month and are the lowest measured since December 2008. The number of voters who give Congress a poor grade is up seven points from last month and is the highest negative review since Republicans took control of the House in January.
From January 2007 through December 2010, with Democrats in control of both the House and Senate, the legislature earned good or excellent marks ranging from 9% to 26%. The high water mark was reached in May 2007. Poor marks for the Democratic tenure ranged from a low of 35% to a high of 71%. That 71% negative rating was reached just before the health care bill became law.
In the four months since Republicans took control of the House, positive ratings for Congress have ranged from nine percent (9%) to 15%, while poor marks have run from 42% to 56%. Democrats continue to control the Senate.
Only 11% of Republican voters believe Congress is doing a good or excellent job, as do 11% of Democrats. Just six percent (6%) of voters not affiliated with either major party give Congress positive marks.
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on April 19-20, 2011 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
Just 17% believe Congress has passed legislation in the past year that will significantly improve life in America, down from 21% last month and the lowest finding since February 2010. Sixty-one percent (61%) say Congress has not passed such legislation, while 21% more are not sure.
But voters are a bit more divided on the goals of Congress. While 47% say the more important role for Congress is passing good legislation, 43% say top priority should be preventing bad legislation from becoming law. That’s the smallest gap since Rasmussen Reports first posed the question in August of last year.
Republicans continue hold a modest lead over Democrats on the Generic Congressional Ballot.
In the ongoing budget-cutting debate in Washington, some congressional Democrats have accused their Republican opponents of being held captive by the Tea Party movement, but voters like the Tea Party more than Congress.
Voters continue to view the Republican agenda in Congress as more mainstream than the agenda of the Democrats. But only one-in-four voters think the average member of either party shares the same ideology they do.
Most voters feel the president and Republicans in Congress are unlikely to agree on major spending cuts before next year’s elections. They also aren't confident either side will come up with a serious plan to begin with.
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