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2006 Public Opinion Survey Detail
Respond to the following statement: "Sometimes politics and government seem so complicated that a person like you can't really understand what's going on."
Strongly agree |
17% |
Somewhat agree |
35.7% |
Neither agree nor disagree |
5% |
Somewhat disagree |
24.7% |
Strongly disagree |
17.6% |
Respond to the following statement: "Public officials don't care much about what people like you think."
Strongly agree |
31.1% |
Somewhat agree |
36.2% |
Neither agree nor disagree |
7% |
Somewhat disagree |
19.7% |
Strongly disagree |
6% |
Using a grade from A to F, how well do you think Congress has done recently in overseeing the activities of the President and the executive branch?
A |
5.9% |
B |
15.7% |
C |
32.6% |
D |
21.9% |
F |
24% |
What grade would you give Congress for encouraging its own level of bipartisan cooperation?
A |
3.7% |
B |
8.5% |
C |
28.3% |
D |
26% |
F |
33.5% |
What grade would you give Congress for conducting its business in a careful, deliberate way?
A |
4.5% |
B |
11.4% |
C |
32.7% |
D |
27% |
F |
24.5% |
What grade would you give Congress for representing all of America's diverse groups and interests?
A |
4.3% |
B |
12.5% |
C |
29.2% |
D |
26% |
F |
28% |
What grade would you give Congress for tackling the key issues facing this country?
A |
4% |
B |
12.3% |
C |
31.8% |
D |
26.1% |
F |
25.8% |
What grade would you give Congress for holding its members to high standards of ethical conduct?
A |
4.4% |
B |
7.2% |
C |
17.9% |
D |
28.4% |
F |
42.1% |
What grade would you give Congress for carrying on a productive discussion on important issues?
A |
4.4% |
B |
11.7% |
C |
36.7% |
D |
26.8% |
F |
20.5% |
What grade would you give Congress for making its workings and activities open to the public?
A |
4.8% |
B |
16.6% |
C |
33% |
D |
23.9% |
F |
21.7% |
What grade would you give Congress for controlling the influence of special interest groups?
A |
4.6% |
B |
7.6% |
C |
21.2% |
D |
27% |
F |
39.6% |
How many times have you contacted either one of your current U.S. Senators or your current Representative in the U.S. House?
Never |
57.5% |
Once |
15.7% |
A few times |
23.6% |
Frequently |
3.3% |
How satisfied were you with the response?
Very satisfied |
19.9% |
Somewhat satisfied |
51.7% |
Not at all satisfied |
28.4% |
Below are listed two reasons that people say they haven't contacted either one of their U.S. Senators or their Representatives in the U.S. House. Which of the following two reasons best applies to you?
You had no problems or reasons |
72.7% |
Would not listen to my concerns |
18.6% |
Both |
1.2% |
Neither |
7.5% |
Do either your Senators or Representative in the U.S. House send you mail such as letters or brochures?
Yes |
69.7% |
No |
30.3% |
Do either of your U.S. Senators or your Representative in the U.S. House hold town meetings that you could attend?
Yes |
48.1% |
No |
51.9% |
How important is it to be involved in community and civic affairs?
Very important |
50.5% |
Somewhat important |
46.1% |
Not very important |
3.4% |
How important is it to follow what is going on in Congress?
Very important |
55.2% |
Somewhat important |
40.2% |
Not very important |
4.7% |
How important is it to keep track of how members of Congress vote?
Very important |
49.3% |
Somewhat important |
42.5% |
Not very important |
8.2% |
How important is it to be involved in election campaigns?
Very important |
32.4% |
Somewhat important |
45% |
Not very important |
22.6% |
How important is it to vote in elections?
Very important |
92.5% |
Somewhat important |
5.4% |
Not very important |
2.1% |
How important is it to keep informed about politics?
Very important |
69.9% |
Somewhat important |
27.2% |
Not very important |
2.9% |
How important is it to contact your U.S. Senators or Representative in the U.S. House?
Very important |
28.2% |
Somewhat important |
55% |
Not very important |
16.8% |
Which of the following tasks performed by Congress do you believe is most important to the individual members of Congress?
Helping individual constituents |
12.3% |
Bringing federal dollars back to their districts |
28% |
Making decisions on national policy issues |
45.8% |
Checking the power of the President |
14% |
If you could change Congress, would you prefer that members take action without engaging in such lengthy discussions about the issues, or discuss issues more thoroughly before taking action?
Take action without engaging in such lengthy discussions |
19.6% |
Discuss issues more thoroughly before taking action |
80.4% |
Would you prefer that members of Congress stand up for their principles come what may, or compromise with their opponents in order to get something done?
Stand up for their principles |
50.5% |
Compromise with opponents in order to get something done |
49.5% |
Which of the following do you think is the better explanation for why Congress sometimes has difficulty arriving at decisions:
The American people have different ideas |
50.7% |
The American people agree, but Congress likes to argue |
49.3% |
Who do you think would make decisions that would best solve the country's problems? Would you say the American people, members of Congress, or policy experts working for the government?
American people |
56% |
Members of Congress |
26.4% |
Policy experts working for the government |
17.7% |
Focusing specifically on your own congressional district, what would you say is the main thing that influences what your Representative does in office?
Personal self-interest |
22.1% |
Interests of the people in the district |
44.6% |
Interests of the country as a whole |
33.3% |
Looking at U.S. Senators and Representatives in the U.S. House as a group, what would you say is the main thing that influences what they do in office?
Personal self-interest |
36.7% |
Interests of the people in their respective districts |
28.9% |
Interests of the country as a whole |
34.4% |
How do you feel about the job your current Representative in the U.S. House is doing as a legislator in Washington D.C.?
Strongly approve |
13.7% |
Somewhat approve |
52.5% |
Somewhat disapprove |
21.5% |
Strongly disapprove |
10.9% |
Neither approve nor disapprove |
1.4% |
How do you feel about the job your current Representative is doing in taking care of specific needs at home in the district?
Strongly approve |
16.5% |
Somewhat approve |
53% |
Somewhat disapprove |
18.7% |
Strongly disapprove |
9.9% |
Neither approve nor disapprove |
1.9% |
What is your main source of information about Congress?
Newspapers |
23.2% |
Television News |
51.1% |
Internet Sources |
8.9% |
Radio |
9.3% |
Magazines |
1.4% |
Talking with others |
5% |
Something else |
1.1% |
Have you contacted your Representative in the U.S. House or your U.S. Senators in the past 2 years?
Yes |
35.9% |
No |
64.1% |
Have you attended a public meeting where one of your U.S. Senators or Representative in the U.S. House was present in the past 2 years?
Yes |
15.7% |
No |
84.3% |