The 'worst Congress ever'? 8 low points of 2011

Narrowly averted shutdowns. Demagoguery. Declarations that pizza's a vegetable? It's no wonder the 112th Congress is less popular than the Gulf oil spill and the IRS

Sorry John Boehner, but Congress did not impress voters this year thanks to a series of partisanship battles.
(Image credit: Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Back in July, longtime Washington watcher Norm Ornstein pegged the 112th Congress as the "worst Congress ever," and it hasn't improved much since. By October, a CBS/New York Times poll clocked the legislative branch's popularity at an abysmal 9 percent, making it less popular (according to various polls) than the idea of the U.S. turning Communist (11 percent), BP during its massive 2010 Gulf oil spill (16 percent), banks (23 percent), King George during the Revolutionary War (an estimated 15 to 20 percent), and even the IRS (40 percent). Why is the tax man four times more popular than Washington lawmakers? Here, eight reminders of why you hated Congress in 2011:

1. The GOP reads the Constitution on the House floor

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