Congressional Approval: 13% Good or Excellent

Rasmussen Reports

Election 2006 was a referendum on President Bush and the GOP Congress. As Election Day dawned, just 15% of Americans rated the performance of the GOP Congress as good or excellent. For the GOP faithful, it probably seemed as if it couldn’t get any worse. But, now, as the Republican Congress is fading into history, their ratings have sunk a bit lower--just 13% now say they’re doing a good or an excellent job (see crosstabs).

A Rasmussen Reports survey of 1,000 Likely voters found that only 12% of Americans believe that Congress had passed any legislation in the preceding year that will “significantly improve life in America.” That’s down from 17% on Election Day. Showing that American distrust of politicians is alive and well, just 15% believe that most Members of Congress are sincerely interested in helping people. Seventy-two percent (72%) believe that most in Congress are primarily interested in advancing their own careers. Earlier in 2006, a Rasmussen Reports survey found that a plurality of Americans believe used-car salesmen are more trustworthy than Members of Congress.

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