Americans' Approval Of Congress And Obama Have Plunged To Near-Historic Lows

Americans' approval of their political leaders is plummeting to near-historic lows, according to a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.

The poll shows that the proportion of Americans who disapprove of the job Congress has climbed to 83%, an all-time high. A hefty 57% say they would vote to defeat and replace every single member of Congress if they could.

Congress's 12% approval rating is tied for the lowest recorded in the history of the poll.

President Barack Obama's approval rating also continues to take a nosedive: only 45% of Americans approve of the job he's doing in the White House. For perspective, his lowest polling numbers in office put him just one point lower at 44% in November 2011.

Most cited government partisanship and inefficiency, as well as a disregard for the needs of the middle class, as the main reasons for their dissatisfaction with government.

Respondents didn't have much faith that their elected officials would be able to overcome partisan gridlock, or that they were even interested in doing so. Only 22% thought Congressional Republicans were working to unite the country, but 45% said the same about Obama.

This week, the White House has hyped a series of speeches on economic policy starting Wednesday at Knox College in Galesburg, Ill. Going into that speech, 51% of Americans disapprove of how he's currently handling the economy.