The Numbers Behind The 'Do Nothing Congress'

NBC News Political Director Chuck Todd unveils new polling and the numbers that make the current do nothing Congress the worst one in modern times.

The worst part of this polling is the fact it accurately reflects the actions of the current Congress with only 142 bills signed into law this year so far and this is even last than the same point in time last year, when Congress passed a record low 153 bills. And all this is far less than the most famous “do nothing Congress” of all time, the one Harry Truman ran against in 1049, as NBC notes in the video, below. That “do nothing” Congress was able to push through over 900 bills into law.

As to public sentiment, the new national NBC News/Wall Street Journal/Marist poll shows that nearly three-quarters of voters think that Congress has been unproductive this year.

The poll also shows 50% who say Congress has been very unproductive, 19% think it has been productive and 3% think it’s been very productive.

As MSNBC reports,

These numbers come after statistics show that the current Congress (2013-2014) is on pace to be the least productive Congress in the modern era – measured by bills that are signed into law.

The NBC/WSJ/Marist poll also shows that Americans are divided on congressional control for the upcoming midterm elections. By 43 percent to 41 percent, voters say they want to see congressional Republicans stay in control of the House.

And by an equal 43 percent to 41 percent margin, they want to see Republicans in charge of the Senate.

You can see the full poll results here.

The poll was conducted July 28-31 of 634 registered voters, and it has a margin of error here of plus-minus 3.9 percentage points.

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The Numbers Behind The ‘Do Nothing Congress’ – VIDEO