These poll numbers were released earlier today by Rasmussen Reports -- "an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information."
75% Say Congress Should Cut Its Own Pay Until Budget is Balanced
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 75% of Likely Voters nationwide want Congress to cut its own pay until the federal budget is balanced.
Only 16% disagree with that approach and nine percent (9%) are not sure.
Not surprisingly, there is a huge gap between Mainstream voters and the Political Class on this topic. Eighty-five percent (85%) of those in the Mainstream want Congress to cut its own pay while 74% of those in the Political Class do not (see more on the Political Class--Mainstream classification.)
Overall, 78% say that any pay raises for Congress should be submitted first to voters before the legislators can receive the extra income.
Fifty-four percent (54%) believe that most federal workers are overpaid. Just 24% disagree and 22% are not sure. Republicans and unaffiliated voters overwhelmingly believe that most federal workers are overpaid. Democrats are evenly divided on the question. Platinum Members can review full demographic crosstabs .
Voters are evenly divided as to whether a group of people selected at random from the phone book would be better than the current Congress.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on August 29-30, 2010 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC . See methodology .
Sixty-eight percent (68%) say that most members of Congress don't care what their constituents think.
A new book by Scott Rasmussen and Doug Schoen addresses the broader discontent roiling the political landscape this year. MAD AS HELL: How the Tea Party Movement Is Fundamentally Remaking Our Two-Party System , published by Harper-Collins, will be released September 14. It can be pre-ordered at Amazon.com , Barnes and Noble , Borders , and other outlets .
The Presidential Approval Index is calculated by subtracting the number who Strongly Disapprove from the number who Strongly Approve. It is updated daily at 9:30 a.m. Eastern (sign up for free daily e-mail update ). Updates are also available on Twitter and Facebook .
The Rasmussen Reports Election 2010 Balance of Power summary shows Republicans likely to gain seats this November while six races remain Toss-Ups ( California , Colorado , Illinois , Nevada , Ohio , and Wisconsin ).
The Rasmussen Reports Gubernatorial Scorecard shows nine Governorships switching from a Democrat to a Republican and three going the other way. Eight races remain Toss-Ups ( Florida , Illinois , Maryland , New Mexico , Oregon , Rhode Island , Vermont , and Wisconsin ).