(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most adults in the United States hold negative views on their federal legislators, according to three recent public opinion polls. In a survey by Opinion Dynamics released by Fox News, 24 per cent of respondents approve of the job the United States Congress is doing, down five points since June.

The approval rating for the House of Representatives and the Senate stands at 21 per cent in a study by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, and 18 per cent in a poll by Gallup released by USA Today.

American voters renewed the House of Representatives and one-third of the Senate in November 2006. On Jan. 4, the Democratic Party took control of the lower house for the first time since 1994, with 233 lawmakers. A victory for the Democratic candidates for the Senate in Montana and Virginia also gave the party a majority in the upper house. Democratic California congresswoman Nancy Pelosi became the first female speaker of the House.

On Aug. 23, Pelosi expressed dismay with the situation in Iraq, saying, "Our military has performed their duties excellently, but the purpose of the escalation in Iraq was to create a secure environment in which political change could occur, and it is clear that the Iraqi leaders have failed to make progress. We need a new direction to bring our troops home from Iraq so that America can refocus its efforts against terrorism worldwide."

Polling Data

a) Do you approve or disapprove of the job Congress is doing?

b) Do you approve or disapprove of the way Congress is handling its job?

c) Do you approve or disapprove of how Congress is handling its job?

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