Senate, House Members Rated

Progressive Punch has produced a sorted list of Senate members on how progressive their voting records are. They also have a similar list for House members. If you are a liberal, people at the top of the list are good and people at the bottom are bad. If you are a conservative, people at the top are bad and people at the bottom are good. Excluding new members of Congress who haven't voted many times yet, the three most progressive members of the Senate are Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI), Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). The three least progressive (i.e., most conservative) senators are Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS), Sen. Michael Crapo (R-ID), and Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN). The three most progressive House members who have served a full term or more are Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL). The three least progressive members of the House are Rep. Kenny Marchant (R-TX), Rep. Adrian Smith (R-NE), and Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN).

The list shows the complete polarization of the Senate. Even the least progressive Democrat, Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), is more progressive than the most progressive Republican, Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA). The same is true of the House, where the least progressive Democrat, Rep. Joe Donnelly (D-IN), is more progressive than the most progressive Republican, Alexander Rodney (R-LA) by a substantial margin.

Governor of Illinois Calls for Burris to Resign

Sen. Roland Burris' problems just keep getting worse. The new governor, Pat Quinn (D), has called for Burris to resign from the Senate. Burris' chief of staff, Darrel Thompson, a longtime aide of majority leader Harry Reid, has resigned his position and has gone back to working for Reid. This is no accident. It is a signal that Reids wants Burris out of there, and fast. The Senate Ethics Committee is already investigating Burris. With the governor of Illinois and the majority leader of the Senate wanting him out, it is not clear what Burris is waiting for, perhaps a direct condemnation from the President? At this point is unlikely Burris will be in the Senate 3 months from now and virtually certain that he will not be the Democratic nominee in 2010 as three high-powered Illinois Democrats (Attorney General Lisa Madigan, state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, and Rep. Jan Schakowsky) are all starting to explore a possible run. If all three of them decide to run for the Senate, with or without Burris, it could be a real bloodbath.

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