Republicans are still shouldering most of the blame for the current government shutdown, new polls found.
Seventy percent of Americans polled disagreed with the way the GOP is handling current issues, while 61% disagreed with the Democrats’ approach, according to a Washington Post-ABC Newspoll released Monday. The president earned the lowest disapproval rating — 51% — out of the three groups.
A day before the shutdown began last week, 63% of Americans said they thought the GOP was handling negotiations poorly, MSNBC reported.
Both sides are unwilling for their party to compromise.
For example, 58% of Democrats said it would be unacceptable for Obama to agree to cuts or delays in the Affordable Health Care Act, according to a new Pew Research Center national survey.
Similarly, 54% of Republicans said it would be unsatisfactory for leaders of their party to agree to any deals that do not include cuts to Obamacare.
The Pew poll also showed approval of Congress is at 11%, a rate that reflects Americans’ displeasure at the ways Washington is dealing with the situation.
In addition, a CNN/ORC International poll released Monday revealed that 18% of the American public said the closure is a crisis, and an additional 49% said it has caused major problems. Democrats showed the most concern about the current situation.
More than 800,000 federal workers were sent out on furlough without pay as a result of the shutdown. The government was also forced to suspend tuition assistance disbursements for veterans, and left struggling families to survive without access to basic services.
The government closed after midnight on Oct. 1 for the first time in 17 years after Congress failed to pass a bill that would have provided a federal budget. Consequently, approval for Congress hit an all-time low as the situation began last week — a mere 10% of Americans said they approve of Congress’ accomplishments.
Michele Richinick