The Maryland Democrat said voters are "absolutely right" to think that "Congress isn't working very well." But that dysfunction, he said, is largely of their own making.

"The American people have every right to be angry [and] disappointed by the performance of the Congress," Hoyer told reporters in the Capitol. "Of course, the American people have also elected people with hard stances, so that to some degree the American people are realizing the results of their votes.

"If elections have consequences - which I think they do - some of those consequences are getting what you vote for," Hoyer added. "In this case, many people voted for people who thought compromise was not something that they ought to participate in."