Congress Approval at All-Time Low - Only 14%!

Congress has reached an all-time low:

This 14% Congressional confidence rating is the all-time low for this measure, which Gallup initiated in 1973. The previous low point for Congress was 18% at several points in the period of time 1991 to 1994.

Congress is now nestled at the bottom of the list of Gallup's annual Confidence in Institutions rankings, along with HMOs. Just 15% of Americans have a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in HMOs. (By way of contrast, 69% of Americans have a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in the military, which tops the list. More on this at galluppoll.com on Thursday).

Generally speaking, Americans have been skeptical about Congress for decades now. But the current 14% confidence rating for Congress is down from 19% last year and is the lowest in Gallup’s history, surpassing the 18% confidence in Congress measured in 1991, 1993 and 1994.

Instapundit give some insightful analysis:

Ouch: Worse than HMOs. It's well-earned. Nonetheless, this is troubling, and not just for the Democrats, who are only doing somewhat worse than the GOP Congress did. How long can we have a free and successful nation with such an unpopular -- and deservedly so -- political class.

To make matters worse, only 3% of Americans approve of Congress' handling of the immigration issue.

One of Instapundit's readers writes:

I think there is a greater disconnect between the Political Class and the Public than ever before -- and, to quote a phrase -- deservedly so. The most liberal senator has more in common with the most conservative senator than either has in common with you or me, and we know it.

This is neither a Democrat or Republican issue. The American public seems to be disgusted with the whole lot of them. And yet they continue to get reelected. It looks like Bryan Caplan might be right.

Here is a review of Caplan's new book, The Myth of the Rational Voter, and a cartoon that may explain a big part of what's going on:

See more reviews of Dr. Caplan's book and listen to Russ Roberts' EconTalk podcast with him "airing" this Monday. You can also read a free 28-page executive summary of the book. [PDF]

While you're at it, you might also want to check-out Tyler Cowen's forthcoming book as well. He has a special offer for those who order early.

P.S. -- For comparison, here is a graph showing showing Presidential approval ratings over the last 60 years:

It looks like Bush has had one of the most steady declines in Presidential history, seconded only perhaps by Nixon and Truman.