A new study by The Sunlight Foundation shows that Congress speaks at a lower comprehension level than it did seven years ago. The level was drawn down by a number of conservative freshman Congressmen — okay, Tea Party guys. But even with the lower grade level influence, Congress speaks above the head of the average American who reads at between 8th and 9th grade level. The Congress comes in at a 10.6 grade level on average.
The Congressional record was studied and analyzed using the Flesch-Kincaid test, which measures the length of words and sentences, longer ones scoring higher. For perspective, the Constitution is written at a level of grade 17.8 and the Gettysburg Address comes in at an 11.2 grade level.
i don't think it's so much dumbing down as it is blind to the peoples needs and the constant propaganda they feed the base becomes their own mindset less now the then before some are rejecting what they before were in favor of it, not all i think the mad overreaching turned lots of their members away.
Examining the data, the Sunlight Foundation concluded that:
- “Controlling for other factors, it is generally the most moderate members of both parties who speak at the highest grade levels, and the most extreme members who speak at the lowest grade levels. This pattern is most pronounced among freshmen and sophomore members.
- Prior to 2005, Republicans on average spoke at a slightly higher grade level than Democrats. Since then, Democrats have spoken on average at a slightly higher grade level than Republicans.
- Some of the decline in grade level since 2005 is because junior members speak at a lower grade level than senior members, and some of it is because senior members have simplified their speech patterns over time.
- On average, the more words individual members speak on the floors of Congress, the simpler their speech tends to be.”
