Congress hopes voters set direction

Washington --

A frustrated Congress quit Washington on Saturday with at least one hope - that the stark choice in the election ahead will give lawmakers clarity about what Americans want from their government.

They desperately need some direction.

Lawmakers will return in about seven weeks and face a crowded list of must-do items, topped by avoiding what's become known as the fiscal cliff: the combination of expiring George W. Bush-era tax cuts and automatic spending cuts that could drive the country back into recession.

Two years of rancor and a divided government resulted in one of the least productive Congresses in history. President Obama piled on in his weekly radio address.

"Without much fanfare, members of the House of Representatives banged a gavel, turned out the lights, and rushed home, declaring their work finished for now," Obama told Americans, while failing to mention the Democratic-controlled Senate. "If that frustrates you, it should - because their work isn't finished."

In the early morning hours Saturday, the Senate cleared and sent Obama a bill to keep the government running for another six months. The temporary measure is a reflection of lawmakers' failure to complete any of the 12 spending bills by the Oct. 1 start of the fiscal year.

The nation will have to wait until after the election for Congress to deal with taxes, spending cuts, a farm bill and the cash-strapped Postal Service. It comes as no surprise to lawmakers that their public approval has plummeted to about 12 percent.

"I literally get on a plane with a baseball hat and hope to God nobody knows who I am because they're just going to yell at me," said two-term Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Fla.

Members of Congress are counting on the voters, faced with a straightforward choice in the election, to decide a way forward.

The candidates and parties present two competing philosophies. Obama and Democrats envision a government with enough resources to help lift up the less fortunate. Mitt Romney and Republicans see a government that gets out of the way, allowing people to make the most in an opportunistic society.

The difficulty for lawmakers is that the presidential election of 2008 and the congressional contests of 2010 contradicted each other.

"The electorate has sent us, has sent the country two very different messages over the last two elections," said freshman Rep. Mick Mulvaney, R-S.C. "They elected the most liberal president in a long time and then the most conservative group to the House of Representatives two years later. That is the conflicting message."

"You sort of look at this (year) as the tiebreaker. I have no difficulty with the big issues of the day being solved at the ballot box," Mulvaney said.

If the election restores the status quo - an Obama win, a Democratic Senate and a Republican House - Democrats are optimistic that the GOP would be more willing to compromise, with establishment Republicans prevailing over the wishes of their Tea Party brethren.

"We shouldn't have to wait for an election for the two sides to come together," said Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. "But for the Republicans, it just might do the trick."

Even the most hidebound lawmaker wouldn't want the alternative, said Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt.

"Do people want to slog through four more years of dysfunction?" Welch asked. "I think even members of Congress have their limits."

Said Rooney: "It would be nice to get something accomplished in the 112th" session of Congress.