RESPECT FOR CONGRESS DIVES - AT 9:49 A.M. ET:  More polling fun.  From Gallup:

PRINCETON, NJ -- For the first time in Gallup's annual Honesty and Ethics of Professions poll, a majority of Americans -- 55% -- say the honesty and ethical standards of "members of Congress" are low or very low -- slightly worse than "senators," whose ethics are rated low by 49%. By contrast, 83% of Americans say nurses have either very high or high ethical standards, positioning them at the top of Gallup's 2009 ranking of various professions.

Maybe we should have the nurses write the health reform bill.

The percentage of Americans now believing that members of Congress have low ethics is up from 46% in 2008 and 45% in 2007, and has more than doubled since the start of the decade -- rising from 21% in November 2000 to 55% today.

Ah, what Democratic victories bring.

But, you ask, what about other professions like...journalists?

Did you have to ask?

Journalists rank in the middle of the ethics chart, with nurses and pharmacists at the top and car salesmen and HMO managers at the bottom.  Some 23% of those polled thought journalists had high or very high ethics, 45% said average, and 31% said low or very low.  Journalists were grouped in with psychiatrists and bankers.  Figure that one out.

December 9, 2009