Bad News for GOP: Data Links High Congressional Disapproval With High Voter Turnout

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Gallup has super bad news for Republicans.  There is a link between high disapproval of congress and high voter turnout.  Republicans have done a great job not only creating record high disapproval levels, their obstructionism combined with wasting money and alienating rhetoric sustained those high levels of disapproval.  If you’re a Republican, you may be tempted to believe your mission was accomplished.  The only problem is high levels of congressional disapproval also means high voter turnout at election time.  We all know what that means in Republican land.

Ever since they took control of the House, Republicans made their priorities clear and none of them involves representing the will of the people.  The GOPT is beholden to the Koch Brothers, Sheldon Adelson, Walmart and other corporate interests that pull Republican lawmaker’s strings with money that is both big and dark.

Republicans were on one huge reverse Robin Hood mission, determined to find new ways and means to satisfy the insatiable greed of the Kochs, the Waltons and anyone else you would find at an ALEC get together. In the name of pandering to their most extreme elements, Republicans obstructed and destroyed their way to the highest disapproval of congress ever some time ago.  They have managed to sustain that level of contempt for a congress that takes food out of the mouths of children to give bigger handouts to the Koch brothers.  Americans see through Republican denials of global warming in the name of giving the Koch brothers the freedom to poison our planet for profit.

The Supreme Court’s ideologically based rulings without doubt, contributed to the disapproval.  Since Citizens United, Republican pandering hit new heights to the point that they don’t even pretend to care what we want. The Court’s decisions reflected a belief that human beings merely have privileges conferred on them in a manner that reflects the civil rights of corporations i.e. a corporation’s religious freedom.

They said no to previously bipartisan laws and programs literally taking the food out of children’s mouths in the name of giving even more handouts to their corporate donors.

Only 13% of America approves of the Kindergarten congress that says no to everything President Obama says or does simply because he had the gall to get elected President of the United States while Black and while Democrat.  While insisting that corporations are people and human beings are not, Republican’s peddle fiction about a belief in individual freedom.  This is probably considered good news in the up is down and down is up logic of Tea Party enthusiasts like Louis Golmert, Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachmann.  After all these are the same people who believe that welshing on our debts is the best way to fix the economy and starving children will make them better citizens.

According to Gallup, the Republicans success in establishing record level disapproval of congress will backfire on them at election time because of the link between high disapproval ratings and high voter turnout.

According to Gallup‘s data, voter turnout exceed 40% during the last five midterm elections when Congress’s approval rating was low.  Turnout was below 40% when Americans were more satisfied with Congress.

Table by Gallup.

Another disturbing number lies in the near record low of 19% of registered voters who believe that most members of Congress deserve re-election.  That also suggests a high voter turnout at election time.  In other words, Republicans achieved the last thing they wanted when they obstructed popular policies, and thumbed their noses at everyone in America except those who lined GOPT pockets.  They angered voters enough for them to want change from an anti-American and anti-America congress to one that governs for the people.

Image: Outside The Beltway

Adalia Woodbury

Former contributor.