The Secret to Congress Getting Popular: Go on Vacation

Congressional approval ratings did something unexpected over the past month, according to a new poll from Gallup : They went up. And all Congress had to do to become more popular was go on vacation.

Nearly a fifth of Americans now say that they approve of the job that Congress is doing, despite Congress having not done its job at all since before its extended August recess. That's the highest level of approval since last fall -- and a level that Gallup notes it has reached "on only a few occasions over the last three years."

What's more, the increase happened across political ideology. Republican voters' approval increased 5 percent; independents, 6 percent; Democrats, 3 percent. Overall, approval increased 5 percent.

Read more on The Atlantic Wire .

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