Who Are the 14 Percent of Americans That Think Congress Is A-Ok?
In a recent Washington Post poll, only 14 percent of Americans said that they approve of how Congress is handling its business. Who are these people? Further questioning reveals that they are:
(a) Obstructionist Republican die-hards:
"It's easy to say [lawmakers] should compromise," said Sherran Whatley, 73, who lives in Washington state. "But if you do that, you're not standing for what you believe in. When it comes to politics, and when it comes to a time when we're in such dire straits, there are lines to be drawn."
(b) Blame themselves:
Massachusetts resident Brenda Macdonald, 69,…said she doesn't like what she hears out of Washington. But, she added, lawmakers can hardly be blamed. After all, she said, the people elected them.
"You reap what you sow," she said. "Maybe we deserve it."
Or (c) Have no idea what is going on:
"I'm not really up on Congress. I have no qualms with them," said Roxanne Kidwell, 58.
The Reason-Rupe poll found similarly dismal results for Congress.
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Law of averages dictates that there MUST be some pages who enjoy Congress handling their business, so that's a start...
I am the 86%.
I can say one thing for sure. I don't hate congress because "they can't get anything done." In my view, the way the government is operating right now is the way it was meant to operate...gridlock. If only it had been operating that way for the past 100 years we wouldn't be in this fiscal mess.
We need gridlock that is more like cement, not the tube of anal-eze that we have right now. This is exactly how it has been operating for the last 100 years.
What percentage of Americans are employed by the Federal Mafia? Some peopple really like their employers - especially when they pay well.
Well, there are the people actually in and directly employed by Congress. There are the businesses directly supporting Congress, like the company running the cafeteria. Oh, and there's the people who get my money via Congress.
Does that add up to 14%?
No those people are in the 86% because they feel they aren't getting enough free shit.
Federal workers are mostly executive branch employees, and the fact that Congress has us (yeah, I know) stuck in perpetual CR hell is likely to outweigh anything else.
The fact that professional dominatrices exist indicates that there is definitely a percentage of the population that like to pay people to abuse them.
Oh and Americans are fucking retarded.
Kudos to the reflective GOP supporters who know what they wanted and are happy to get it.
The broader strategy of the GOP, though, is to make government as dysfunctional as they can, thereby a) proving themselves right about how government can't do anything well, and b) making people hate "government" and "Congress" generally, thus punishing incumbents of both parties (specifically here the president).
Obama seems to have figured this out and sees it as his job to make sure people realize the only reason government isn't functioning is because Republicans don't want it to.
Barf
The strategy of the Democrats is to do every evil thing the Republicans do, then plead they were only trying to be "bipartisan", and beg liberals to help elect more and better Democrats.
You're a sucker, Tony.
So in Tony's world, the only reason government fails at everything it tries is "The Republicans." Got it.
They do tend to do that.
But to you, even government's successes are its failures.
Being successful at committing atrocities is no virtue, and obstructing traitors and totalitarians like you and the politicians you elect from committing atrocities against us is no vice. ZeroCare alone should earn everyone who voted for it capital punishment, and that's not even the worst atrocity you socialist scum have committed.
Re: Stoopid In America,
Which would be quite an achievement if they ever made any difference in the current level of dysfunctionality. Like looking for new fleas on an elephant.
You mean making the obvious a little bit more obvious?
We're already beyond that. Government can't do anything well no matter how well government tried to do well. Entendez vous?
Kudos to the reflective GOP supporters who know what they wanted and are happy to get it.
Is the subtext Democrats aren't getting what they wanted?
conservatives who embrace the gridlock
If there are, in fact, any of those, besides that one guy they quoted who sounds kind of...implausible, those people watch too much TV.
There's no shortage of lawmaking going on. It's just all lawmaking "everyone" wants done (except voters), so there are no victory-gavel bill-signing video clips.
"The do-nothing Congress" is a character on cable news shows. The real one is doing all kinds of horrible shit.
(D) Insane Contrarian
"I can identify with the hated underdog" said Hit&Run; commentor Joshua Corning.
The problem is that while only 14% approve of Congress as a whole most approve of their own representatives. As long as this holds, nothing will ever change.
"I'm not really up on Congress. I have no qualms with them," said Roxanne Kidwell, 58.
That must be a woman who really knows how to party. Wonder if she is a descendant of Nero?
Group C actually makes up around 90% of the population, but at least they mostly DON'T approve of congress anyway because they still heard that it sucks.
Massachusetts resident Brenda Macdonald, 69,...said she doesn't like what she hears out of Washington. But, she added, lawmakers can hardly be blamed. After all, she said, the people elected them.
"You reap what you sow," she said. "Maybe we deserve it."
Somebody gets it.
That's why they're a masshole.
NEWS FLASH! Democracy can be ugly. Happily, we beautiful libertarians are here to point out The Uglies' flaws and to buttress our own claims to perfection.
Happily, we beautiful libertarians are here to point out The Uglies' flaws and to buttress our own claims to perfection.
There's only like 12 of us. How much harm could we possibly be doing?
That's 12 if you count all the sock puppets.
Whatley, 73
Brenda Macdonald, 69
Roxanne Kidwell, 58
Don't trust anyone over 50?
Doth seem to me it's either "What Are the 14 Percent of Americans That Think Congress Is A-Ok?" or, preferably, "Who Are the 14 Percent of Americans Who Think Congress Is A-Ok?"
Thanks for sharing the useful information with us. I am agree with you, I will keep it in my mind.
Obstructionist Republican die-hards
---------------------
I see; so the ones elected on a specific principle who stick to it are obstructionists. Seems DC could use a few more such folks; the opposite has not worked out too well.
Of course, you understand that most of the candidates these guys like didn't get elected, so most of them don't approve either. The few who do approve probably are the ones who did get their own elected, and happen to live in a district that elected one of them.
I guess I'm an asshole or something, because I agree with (a). I hope the few decent congresscritters, like Ron Paul, don't compromise.
Hlario commentfrom Krugman on the Occupy Wall Street Protests:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10.....ctors.html
It would probably be helpful if protesters could agree on at least a few main policy changes they would like to see enacted. But we shouldn't make too much of the lack of specifics. It's clear what kinds of things the Occupy Wall Street demonstrators want, and it's really the job of policy intellectuals and politicians to fill in the details.
Don't worry kids, we'll decide what you think!
You know who else used popular discontent to come up with sweeping policy changes?
LBJ?
Of those 14%, how many didn't understand the question?