A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that just 1% of likely voters give Congress an excellent rating and 12% say the legislature has done a good job. Forty-nine percent (49%) give congress a poor rating (see crosstabs.)

Men are more critical of Congress than women--61% of men give the legislature a poor rating along with 39% of women.

The recent numbers show only a very slight improvement from over the past month. The current ratings for Congress are a bit lower than they were on Election Day 2006. At the time the Democrats won control of the legislature, 15% said Congress was doing a good or an excellent job. Between Election Day and the end of the year, while Republicans were still in control, perceptions of Congress declined even further. They rebounded after the Democrats grabbed the baton in early 2007 and then began to slump again in early summer as the nation watched congressional leaders try to impose an unpopular immigration bill.

Today, only 13% of voters believe Congress has passed legislation that has improved life; 59% disagree. Those numbers have stayed pretty much the same over the last month.

Voters seem to be slightly more optimistic than last month as to whether they believe congress will seriously address important problems, with 39% saying it is at least somewhat likely. However, over half (56%) think it is not likely.

Most voters view congressmen as self-serving rather than as people interested in helping others. Sixty-nine percent (69%) of all voters feel that congressmen are more interested in their own careers. Eighty percent (80%) of Republicans think congressmen hold that view along with 61% of democrats agree.

The Supreme Court earns better ratings than Congress, with 38% giving it a good or excellent rating and 19% who rate it as poor.

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