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Poll: New low for congressional approval

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    What's behind sinking numbers?

  • Duration 4:23
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What do you think about the US congress while nationwide.

Congressional approval ratings are sinking to a new lol.

The Gallup organization chose approval of congress and just 10%.

In the past year nearly 4000 bills have been introduced in congress less than 2% of those bills 61 of them have become law.

Those statistics make it the least productive congress since World War II now given those numbers it's not surprising that concern in the upcoming election.

Is whether or not voters will even bother to show up.

Talk about it with Charlie hurt he is a columnist for The Washington Times.

You know Charlie some would say if congress isn't passing a lot of new legislation that could actually be a good thing.

What do you think.

Absolutely you know ordinarily.

Americans and and taxpayers would be.

Far better off if congress would stop helping us so much but the problem is that the way they've sort of fouled up the whole the whole system.

Is that that even when they're not producing any thing.

All the spending the massive spending is it goes on auto pilot and we're on the hook for all of that and so just keeps it you know we keep getting further further further deeper into debt.

And and right now we actually need them to to get together and do something to stop the spending.

Of course you know most famously.

-- the last remotely productive congress we had what was when Democrats controlled the house they controlled the senate.

Nearly filibuster proof that was filibuster proof.

At one point and the White House.

And -- -- at that point they didn't do anything to stop the spending or to slow the spending.

But they did give us obamacare which and it had gone over so well with -- it with voters one of -- -- You know of them the basic -- the most basic.

I think that they are required to do if they don't even come up with a budget then nobody in congress gets paid.

What do you think about that.

I've I've always thought that was -- would be a wonderful wonderful way to get everybody kind of serious and get them to the table.

The senate and and to be fair the house for example this year the house is it.

It has produced a number of bills pass a number of bills that's about on par with what what -- most houses.

You know going back -- to have the real problem is in the senate the senate is just completely locked down.

And and under the leadership of Harry Reid win when Democrats controlled every lever in town.

They felt I think for four out of five years I think it's been four years now.

Since the senate has approved a budget and it and as you point out John it is it is such a fundamental such a basic.

Sort of litmus test to you know that the legitimacy of the legislature and and they haven't even produced a budget.

Each of those years the house at least has produced a budget of some sort but it of course goes -- -- is in the senate if they would can't get anything done.

Well and the president is fond of blaming congress for you known his perceived problems but.

It does bear pointing out that you know half of the congress in the United States senate.

And they are run by Democrats I mean his problems seem to be with Republicans.

In the house -- he doesn't make that.

Clear.

Yet and and he also has been complaining about this for a long time and and and as you point out you know for the first two years of his administration.

He his party controlled everything.

If they wanted to do away with the bush tax cuts they could have done away with the bush tax cuts you're meeting that they wanted to raise taxes they could raise taxes than if they wanted to cut spending they could cut spending they didn't.

Didn't do any of that and they waited.

Until their party became unpopular enough.

That their their majority in the senate shrunk and they lost the house.

And of course now it is is intractable because you've got you know a joint leadership -- you know do.

More bipartisan congress and of course it's going to be more difficult now but it but it really does sort of strain -- credibility.

For for President Obama did to you just -- try to blame all on Republicans when they did they they ran the tables for two years and and we still are in a mess.

We would see.

What happens in November that's going to be interesting Charlie hurt from Washington times Charlie thank you.