Congressional approval at all-time low of 9%, according to new CBS News/New York Times poll

cbs

CBS News Poll analysis by the CBS News Polling Unit: Sarah Dutton, Jennifer De Pinto, Fred Backus and Anthony Salvanto.

Approval ratings for Congress dropped into single digits this month for the first time since CBS News and the New York Times began asking the question more than three decades ago.

In a poll released Tuesday, just nine percent of Americans said they approve of the job lawmakers on Capitol Hill are doing. The all-time low is down 2 points from an 11 percent approval rating just a month ago, and is the first single digit level since the question was first asked in 1977.

According to the poll, which was conducted between October 19-24, Americans also have less trust than ever in the government's ability to make the right decisions: Just one in ten Americans currently say they trust the government to do what is right all or most of the time - down from 23 percent who said the same just a year ago. That figure - at just 1 percent - is a record low since the CBS News/New York Times poll first asked the question in 1976.

Eighty-nine percent of Americans - a record high - say they trust the government only some of the time or never.

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Moreover, congressional disapproval is not confined to one party: more than four out of five Republicans, Democrats, and Independents (83 percent, 83 percent, and 85 percent, respectively) disapprove of the job Congress is doing.

President Obama's approval rating remains consistently below the 50 percent mark, with 46 percent of Americans approving of his job performance and 46 percent disapproving. That's a slight uptick from his rating in September of 2011, when he earned 44 percent support.

CBS

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This poll was conducted by telephone from October 19-24, 2011 among 1,650 adults nationwide. 1,475 interviews were conducted with registered voters and 455 with voters who said they plan to vote in a Republican primary. Phone numbers were dialed from samples of both standard land-line and cell phones. The error due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus two percentage points. The margin of error for the sample of registered voters could be plus or minus three points and four points for the sample of Republican primary voters. The error for subgroups may be higher. An oversample was conducted for this survey which will be analyzed in a future poll release. This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.

[riuey]

I have no problem with Obama, Congress just refuses to do any thing to help the country. All they worry about is the money to get reelected. I hope all of us that go to the polls remember what this Congress has done or has not done is the proper statement. It is Congress that has to pass the laws to get the country moving, instead they just sit back hoping to make more money from those that really are running our Government, that being Wall Street.

[noloyalisti]

Not nearly enough people recognize that the giant corporations and the greedy rich have taken over the government for their own profits. People want to blame the government but I would go after the Top 1% whose massive payoffs have corrupted our entire political and judicial system.

The Top 1% expect the government to serve them as puppets. This is undoubtedly enforced the way the Mafia does: by threat of bodily harm to them or their families.

[minoriabc1]

They are so dysfunctional it sad but funny. Check out a funny video representation of a Congress making breakfast at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Hm99hlAOc4

[Kenny777_y]

we have not seen anything yet. this wall street protest is just the tip of an iceberg. unemployment will increase, people in general will be poorer,just face it there is no fix to this. dont mean to be funny or out of line but all the kings horses and all the kings men can never be trusted again. at one time i was hopeful ,,,,really was, just wanted to say that before everyone calls.me a quitter.

[stevehamilton858]

I agree with you about the OWS movement. The Republicans are trying to minimize its significance, but it's not going to go away. I live in Davis, California, and this past week, several university cops pepper sprayed peaceful demonstrators. Thank God, they don't carry guns, or we would have had another Kent State.

My sincere hope is that the current manifestation of the Republican party is going to get beaten so badly next year that a new conservative party, founded on Lincoln's ideals, and with members like Ike Eisenhower, Bill Buckley, and Ronald Reagan will replace the pandering group of corporate toadies that make up today's party. The Tea Party will die, and the Norquist/ATR pledge will be determined in court to create a conflict of interest with the oath of office, so that any elected official who signs the pledge would be subject to impeachment.

[miknfltoo]

Maybe these numbers are the reason Cantor and Beohner announced only 108 working days for the House in 2012. If they "work" even less time then people will have less negative feelings toward them.

[stevehamilton858]

Are you kidding? Most people in industry, or law, or accounting work 250 days per year, less 8 or 9 legal holidays. If these clowns take that much time off when the country is facing the incredibly difficult issues that exist today, they will create a lot more negative feelings. Making things work takes a lot of time, particularly if the problems that need solving are complex. My 50 years of military and business experience has taught me that there are no simple solutions to complex problems.

[zenia5]

This country is being run by big corporations (esp. oil, pharma, and insurance) who are pulling the strings of lawmakers....money talks. Getting rid of the lawmakers and the system that allows this to happen...along with term limits...should help fix the problem.

[gkoeven1]

Yeah that 9 % is probably the millionares scared that they may have to pay the same taxes as everyone else. TAX THE RICH THE SAME RATE AS EVERYONE ELSE.

[wadesboro]

Beware of that 9%!

[34sender]

Congress is corrupted by the same greed that corrupts any originally good idea (like the USA!)

If we can get the big money out of the system -- End the PACS and corporate donations, only allow individual donations not exceeding say $200-500 -- we might have a chance to have representatives that listen to the people.

Money has corrupted the American system, not politics. Differing opinions can make for good solutions... people crafting those solutions being beholden to the highest bidder? Not good. Not good at all.

[stevehamilton858]

I like your idea about campaign contribution limits. It could help a lot. Getting such a law passed would be challenging, to say the least, but it probably could happen. There's a waterfall effect in the current system; you sell your soul, so if I want to run against you, I have to sell my soul.

[A_Canadian_Opinion]

Congratulations Boner! You're the biggest cause of the 9% approval rating. Very few people approve of slimy used car salesman.

[A_Canadian_Opinion]

The Democratic side has been trying to get something done, but the Republican side keeps putting up roadblocks. It's the lack of getting something done that has made the approval rating so low, hence the Republicans deserve most of the blame.

And that's a weird self-depracating sign-off you have there.

[smittyc]

Reid and Pelosi have been around a lot longer than Boehner. Pelosi wealth when Obama took office down to half million, today over 35 million. These two, Reid and Pelosi, are both part of the l% libs are screaming about. They represent two of the three states that are suffering the most California and Nevada, third is Illinois, home to Obama. Pretty clear where the leadership problem is. You can love them all you want, just keep them, their politics and programs away from me thank you very much.