2nd Chapter 7 Post

     According to a recent Gallup survey, Congress’s approval rating is currently at an all time low of 18%. Every year this poll is conducting, asking citizens whether or not they approve of the way Congress is handling its job. And every year, the results are the same: for some reason people simply just don’t like Congress. In 2005, Congressional approval regularly hovered around 40 percent however since then it has plummeted. This year, stockbrokers, funeral directors and lawyers all scored higher in their approval ratings. Even journalists and telemarketers, which are known to be criticized by the public time and time again, have higher approval ratings than Congress. So ultimately the question that must be raised is: why is Congress’s approval rating so extremely low?
     
     “Part of it is just the character of the news about Congress,” said John Pitney a political scientist and professor at Claremont College in Claremont, California.  “If a member of Congress is totally upstanding and a good family person and is scrupulous about finances, that doesn’t make news.”The thing that I find most striking is that everyone seems to love their own congressmen. District representatives continually get high ratings, while Congress as a whole seems to ultimately plunge.Some argue that Congress has shown little ability to get things done and when they have done something, it has proven to be very unpopular. Former Representative Tom Davis stated “Congress has produced nothing but bad outcomes. Two failed wars, stagnant wages [and] economic meltdown.”

     
     This does actually have some validity to it. If you take a long over the last several years of Congressional action, there have been many failed attempts at things such as overhauling Social Security, the Mark Foley page scandal, the healthcare slog and the budget showdown just to name a few. What also makes things even worse is the prevelance of our media that did not exist decades ago. The existence of 24-hour cable news, Facebook and Twitter means that minor problems get major league attention. A few years ago, such issues may have held a small newspaper article, but nowadays you can hear about it right when you turn on your television or the computer.

    
     Furthermore, the period of heightened economic anxiety has facilitated this low approval rating. Many have resorted to pessimism, as they are frustrated with America’s position on the world stage. Jobless rates also peaked in the last several years, which would inevitably cause the American people to be skeptical. According to former Texas Representative Chet Edwards, people are more forgiving of Congress when they have a job and those that have jobs feel secure in them.
     
     Overall, it is a combination of Congress’s lack of meaningful accomplishments, combined with the country’s negative bent that has driven down the approval number of the House and the Senate.