Approval Rating Of Congress Essay

The world is full of problems, some are recognized, and others are not. You wouldn’t think that the world’s lowest voter turnout rate is found in the world’s largest democracy. But, surprisingly, it hasn’t gotten much attention. Ironically, the approval rating of congress is at just 15%. Americans aren’t voting, and they don’t approve of who gets elected as a result of their refusal to participate, I think there is a responsibility issue here. Few understand the basis of our government, which is popular sovereignty. We the people are in control of the government, it is not the other way around. Many people feel that their vote won’t make much of a difference, but they don’t realize that if they want change they have to work for it. The hopelessness of those who waste their votes reminds me of something my dad told me once, “the answer is always no, if you never ask the question.” Maybe if people put down the Cheetos and took twenty minutes of their lives to participate in their government the approval rating of Congress wouldn’t be so low.

I feel so passionately about this topic because my parents came to the U.S. in 2001, and sure enough with their small amount of political knowledge voted in the 2004 general election. If uninformed immigrants can recognize their civic duty to participate in politics, then why don’t native born Americans feel the same amount of responsibility? What excuses could people possibly have for not voting? It’s free, it’s easy, one does not need to know much about politics to vote, and a democratic government like ours is what people literally die for in other countries. Too many people nowadays are doing exactly what John F. Kennedy warned them about. They are suggesting what the country can do for the citizen, not suggesting what the citizen can do for the