Poll: Self-interest motivates debt talks

At least two-thirds of Americans say both political parties are putting their own interests first in the U.S. debt ceiling negotiations, a poll revealed. The latest USA Today-Gallup Poll of 1,016 adults found 72 percent said Republicans were acting in their own self-interest while 65 percent said Democrats were doing the same thing. Forty-nine percent of those polled said President Barack Obama was putting politics first in the debt talks while 47 percent of respondents said he was interested in what was best for the country. The poll found the overall job approval ratings of President Obama along with Congressional Republicans and Democrats remain low. Obama's 45 percent approval rating is statistically similar to his ratings in surveys taken since last August, the poll found. The same is true for Republicans and Democrats in Congress. Democrats' latest approval rating of 33 percent and Republicans' 28 percent approval rating has varied little for the past year. The USA Today-Gallup poll was conducted by telephone July 15-17. It carries a margin of error of 4 percentage points.