Based on the national debt of the United States, the debt owed by each American citizen is $47,724.00. This does not mean we are accumulating debt ourselves, this is a representative number of how much debt is compared to that of all American citizens (US Debt, 2011). According to the US Social Security Office, the average income of an American citizen is $41,673.83 (Social Security Administration, 2011). While these statistics are based loosely, the average is a sample. One could argue that it is not accurate to the current economic situation, although the debt values ​​are. This explains why Congress' approval rating is currently below 20%, according to new Gallup polls (Gallup, 2011). The Washington Post published an article titled Poll: Voters Say to Throw Out Entire Congress, in which the writer explains that Americans are unhappy with Congress and a high percentage would like them all removed (The Washington Post, 2011) . All of these statistics are rather predictable considering that the 112th Congress is full of hardline members who value the census of their constituents more than the importance of making good public policy. Furthermore, loyalty is no longer focused on making good “public policies” but lies with the member's political party. As a result, members are unwilling to work together, which leaves unfinished business and a lack of oversight. Currently, we are faced with a divided government and a president who has received a lot of backlash because of it. Republicans currently hold the House majority while the Senate is divided. This created a congress that chose not to cooperate and saw compromise as a sign of weakness. The Washington Post article, Bipartisan Group of Senators at......middle of paper......r, M. (2011). Obama challenges Congress on jobs plan. The New York Times.Pecquet, J. (2011). Cantor: Republicans agree there's "too much revenue." The Hill .Social Security Administration. (2011, October 24). Automatic determinations. Retrieved October 23, 2011, from the United States Social Security Administration: http://www.ssa.gov/oact/cola/AWI.htmlThe Washington Post. (2011). Poll: Voters say they're throwing away the entire Congress. The Washington Post .The debt of the United States. (2011). National debt. Extracted from US debt. Org: http://www.usdebtclock.org/Wallsten, P. (2011, September). A bipartisan group of senators will push for more deficit cuts. Retrieved October 27, 2011, from the Washington Post: http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/2446222921.html?FMT=FT&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Sep+9%2C+2011&author=Peter+Wallsten&desc=Bipartisan+ group+ of+senators+to+push+for+a+larger+deficit+cuts&liberation=1