"Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself."

-- Mark Twain

The American Congress has long been a butt of jokes. But it has never been more worthy of them than now.

Polls indicate just 9 percent think this Congress is doing a good job. For you English majors, that means 91 percent think otherwise.

Indeed, while Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid have made careers out of hating the president and undermining our war effort, they've gotten almost nothing of substance done.

"Barring a burst of legislative activity after Labor Day," says The Wall Street Journal , "this group of 535 men and women will have accomplished a rare feat. In two decades of record keeping, no sitting Congress has passed fewer public laws at this point in the session -- 294 so far -- than this one. That's not to say they've been idle. On the flip side, no Congress in the same 20 years has been so prolific when it comes to proposing resolutions -- more than 1,900, according to a tally by the nonpartisan Taxpayers for Common Sense."

While holding hearings on the New England Patriots' spying scandal and steroids in baseball, the Journal notes that this Congress also wasted invaluable time passing meaningless resolutions "to celebrate watermelons and to decree the origins of the word 'baseball.'"

And now, the Senate -- whose members can accept all kinds of money from special interests that have business before Congress -- is cracking down on what? On Sen. Tom Coburn's baby delivering.

Seems Coburn, an obstetrician, has continued his practice since joining the Senate. The ever-vigilant Senate Ethics Committee smelled an obvious rat (note the sarcasm) and deemed that a violation of Senate rules; you can't be paid for work outside the Senate.

So what does Coburn do? He keeps delivering babies -- but now for free.

So what does the Senate Ethics Committee do? Tells him that's still a violation, and to stop delivering babies for free.

So what does Coburn do? Ignores the committee.

Polls indicate three-quarters of Americans agree with Coburn. So do we.

This Congress isn't just having jokes made about it. It has become the joke.