Poll Tracker

The approval chart for Democrats in Congress looks like a ball that rolled off a ledge, but they can cling to a couple of facts they might take as good news: Things have been worse for them before, and as bad as things are now, the Republicans are suffering even more, according to a Gallup poll taken Aug. 31-Sept. 2.

Part of the reason approval for Republicans in Congress is in the tank is that Republicans'support for their own kind has dropped from 52 percent to 39 percent, and one reason their approval rating isn't worse is that Democrats' approval for Republicans in Congress has risen from 9 percent last December to 20 percent in mid-September, Gallup said.

Public approval of the job Congress does as a whole is at 31 percent and has held steady in the low-30 percent range since June, Gallup said.