Do Your Duty

A “lame duck” session of Congress occurs whenever a Congress meets after its successor is elected, but before the successor’s term begins.
It can occur in several ways, but a lame duck session doesn’t have to occur. It can convene for a specific reason, or many reasons. If it does meet, it usually happens between mid-November and Christmas. Hang on – the next two months could prove interesting if this week’s polls are right. We’ll all watch Congress closely.
Our general election is fast approaching, Nov. 2, and many citizens have waited many months for that date. Wyoming’s lone House member is up for election, and is ahead in the polls so far.
Wyoming, along with most of the nation, has not approved of Congress over the last year or two. Our President, while running for office, told us what he wanted to do, and he has pretty much lived up to it, and most Democrats in Congress have jumped in and tried their best to help the President and his agenda.
While most of Congress and current leadership approved borrowing and spending record amounts of dollars, even most who were against big spending jumped in with pet projects for their home states after the dollars were approved. To many citizens, that was just as bad as voting for the dollars and programs, and that’s resulted in the Tea Party’s popularity. Everyone now watches them on their roll – Democrats, Republicans and Independents alike.   
Prior to an election, all we have for data are the polls. They’ve been proven wrong many times in the past, but they are fun to watch before the big tally on voting day.
Only 21 percent of Americans say they approve of the job President Obama is doing. If that level persists through Election Day, the Gallup poll says that would be the lowest level ever measured at a mid-term election in the more than 30-year history of the poll question. That is not good for the President, but he has been campaigning for those running for Congress. The polls show he is having a tough time convincing the youth vote, and they were his strong suit in his own election.
The polls also show past-President Clinton is more effective in gaining votes for Democrats. With President Obama’s ratings low as they are, we need to look back at previous Presidents’ approval ratings in October of their second year in office. Richard Nixon’s approval rating was 58 percent at this time, and he left Washington in disgrace. Ronald Reagan was at 42 percent, and now he is a hero to most. Jimmy Carter, who had trouble getting anything right, was at 49 percent at this time, and two years later he was out.
It is a great time to be an American. We always seem to get fed up with the wrongs and get it right by just one vote at a time. Just make sure you do your part. We all have to live with the results.     
Dennis