Public Expects Congress Will Be Dysfunctional In 2014

There is no doubt that the American public was disgusted with Congress in 2013, and its inability or unwillingness to compromise for the good of the country. Known as the "do nothing" Congress, it accomplished less than any other Congress in modern history. And the people responded to that by giving it the lowest approval ratings since polls have been measuring congressional approval (ranging between 6% and 11% depending upon the poll).

As we enter this new year, and with a new session of Congress to start soon, the YouGov Poll surveyed 1,000 adults between December 28th and 30th (with a margin of error of about 4.3 points) to see if the public thinks Congress might perform any better in 2014 (given the low ratings it has received).

But the American people are realistic about this, and they think Congress will be just as dysfunctional in 2014 as it was in 2013 (or worse). About 50% believe Congress will perform the same as they did last year, and another 24% thinks they probably will be even worse. Only 11% thinks they will improve on last year's dismal performance (and another 15% say they don't know).

I agree with the 50% who say Congress will be the same as it was in 2013 -- but only because I don't think they could get any worse than they were in 2013. Hopefully, we can fix this problem in November of this year.