2011 Senate 'Laziest' in Decades

The 2011 Senate produced less legislation than any other since 1992, according to a report by the chamber's own secretary. Throughout its 170 days, the Senate was in session an average of just 6.5 hours per day; only 2008's Senate had a lower figure, with three members running for president. The 2011 Senate also confirmed just 19,815 nominations, the fewest in 20 years, and passed a total of only 402 measures, the second-fewest since 1992. The data is particularly embarrassing because 2011 wasn't an election year, when productivity typically falls, the Washington Examiner reports. (More Senate stories.)