Thread: Failed Democracy?

Congress approval rating has dropped to an all time low - 9%.


The 9%: Congress's Approval Rating Hits the Single Digits | TIME.com


There has been a consistent decline in the approval rating that started in April of 2003.

Congress and the Public | Gallup Historical Trends


It would be ideal if the thread was focused on the reasons for the decline and possible remedies for a Government that blatantly does not represent the will of the people.


I'll start with a problem. Despite the nauseating approval rate, the vast majority of our congressman will be re-elected. One factor that contributes to this problem is the practice of redistricting (gerrymandering).

House And Senate Incumbent Re-Election Rates Top 90%

Documentary on redistricting: Gerrymandering | Watch Documentary Film Free

Only fix IMO is educating the voter base, which the dim wits in Congress aren't going to do because then they would pretty much all be jobless.

As for reasons for the decline:

We've been at war for a over a decade - more than half of that for no fucking reason relevant to our country.

National debt continues to rise and the warm bodies that are the only people capable of reducing the budget can't seem to figure out how to actually pass one

Obomacare roll out abomination

Complete lack of bipartisanship in congress

Gerrymandering

Things that might help:

Pass a fucking budget. A new one. That actually reduces spending. And start paying down our debt.

Lock districts where they are.

Get the fuck out of the middle east. We no longer have any business in being there.

“Public displeasure with Congress is equally rampant across political groups, with Republicans (9%), independents (8%), and Democrats (10%) giving the institution similarly low approval ratings,” said Gallup.

In a similar trend, in a Pew survey about 74 percent of Americans wanted to see most members of Congress defeated if they ran for re-election.

Source

So the problem maybe something other than education. Clearly the public doesn't want those in congress to be re-elected. So why does that same public re-elect them at a rate of 90%?

Gerrymandering plays a role for sure. I think a big issue is the, so to speak, the silent middle. The extreme sides win due to the districts and (my opinion) people who aren't overly vested not voting.

Many people go to the voting booth and pick a name that they recognize. That's probably the person already in office.

Originally Posted by deathgodusmc

The only reason they keep getting elected is because the people are a bunch of lazy drooling complaining bitches. Actually voting for someone else is just to much like fucking work.

I dont think we need to leave the middle east to change anything. It really has nothing to do with this issue but if i had a say in it the fucking gloves would come off and end this shit.

The budget is just to easy to fix but you have to have people willing to actually do something about it. Not gonna happen regardless of which party is in charge unless a new breed steps up.

I agree, they should leave war to the Generals instead of the politicians - but if they were willing to do that we'd have wiped the floor and been out a decade ago. Not going to happen - that's why I say just get the fuck out.

There are many reasons - I for one would like to see an end to gerry-mandering and to all political contributions. Those 2 things would revolutionize the government. Term limits wouldn't hurt either.

Originally Posted by iravedic

There are many reasons - I for one would like to see an end to gerry-mandering and to all political contributions. Those 2 things would revolutionize the government. Term limits wouldn't hurt either.

This.

If we ever want to truly rid ourselves of these self-serving pricks, we need to hit them where they live.......at the bank. Giving each candidate a finite set amount of cash would even the playing field for those who truly want to serve while weeding out many who would only serve themselves.

It would put an end to nonsense like this:
California
"Loaning" $150K to her PAC, and then charging 18% interest on the loan.......for a DECADE +. She scammed more per year from her reelection war chest than many in here make.

Originally Posted by iLLusioN

Only fix IMO is educating the voter base, which the dim wits in Congress aren't going to do because then they would pretty much all be jobless.

As for reasons for the decline:

We've been at war for a over a decade - more than half of that for no fucking reason relevant to our country.

National debt continues to rise and the warm bodies that are the only people capable of reducing the budget can't seem to figure out how to actually pass one

Obomacare roll out abomination

Complete lack of bipartisanship in congress

Gerrymandering

Things that might help:

Pass a fucking budget. A new one. That actually reduces spending. And start paying down our debt.

Lock districts where they are.

Get the fuck out of the middle east. We no longer have any business in being there.

Pass a budget? But...But Illusion! Don't you know the deficit is lower than it's ever been vs. GDP since WWII or some shit? I swear it's true, Rachel Maddow told me!

One thing you left out - create laws that crack down on lying in journalism. Laws that make assholes like Maddow go to jail for lying. THEN we'll see who is really biased and who is not.