New High: 48% Say Most Members of Congress Are Corrupt

What's even more surprising is that a majority think these candidates spend millions, sometimes out of pocket, for the job because of their patriotism, civil mindedness and big heart.

The belief that politicians use their office for personal gain is growing.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that 48% of Likely U.S. Voters believe that most members of Congress are corrupt. Just 28% disagree, and another 24% are not sure.

The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on December 27-28, 2011 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.