ABC/WaPo Poll: 80 Percent Have 'No Confidence' in Washington GOP

A massive majority of Americans have no confidence in Republicans in Congress, including a high percentage of GOP supporters, a new poll has found.

According to the Washington Post-ABC News poll, conducted Jan. 20-23 among 1,003 adults, 80 percent of those surveyed said they have little or no faith in congressional Republicans, compared to just 19 percent who say they do have confidence.

Democrats fare slightly better with 72 percent saying they have no faith in that party's congressional members.

"The low confidence in congressional Democrats and Republicans is consistent with a pattern of poor ratings of congressional performance that marked the past year. In the new poll, just 16 percent approve of the way Congress is doing its job," the Post notes. That marks a slight uptick from the lowest reading recorded by the pollsters last October, just after the partial government shutdown ended.

One difficulty for Republicans is the comparative weakness within their own ranks. Among Democrats, 56 percent are confident in their party to make the right decisions, the poll found. Just 36 percent of Republicans, by contrast, express confidence in their own party, ABC News says.

Respondents said they trust Republicans more than Democrats on handling the economy and the federal budget deficit, and the GOP's lead on the economy is their largest in the Post-ABC polling since 2002.

Republicans also have an advantage on the question of which party has better ideas about the "right size and role of the federal government."

Democrats, on the other hand, are rated more highly than the GOP on issues related to health care, raising the minimum wage, helping the middle class and understanding the economic problems people are facing. More Americans say they identify with Democrats' positions on abortion and same-sex marriage than with Republicans, though Republicans win out on gun control.

"Comparing views of the parties on key issues lays out a likely road map for the 2014 campaign," ABC News says.

Related stories:

• Pew Poll: Most Republicans Just Itching for November
  
• Washington Post-ABC News Poll: 63% Have 'No Confidence' in Obama