Kerry is NOT the most liberal senator

[12th Doctor]

I'm tired of people saying this. The ratings that showed him as such came from a year when he missed many many votes. The only times he voted was when he voted party line, hence he ends up being a 100% party line voter which makes him most liberal for that year, but it's a very poor sample.

He is one of the most most liberal senators, no doubt, definately one of the 10 most and arguably even 5 most, but it's tough to argue he is the single most. A lot of people say that this distinction makes him even more liberal than Kennedy. Well I dare anyone to find one vote where Kerry voted to the left of Kennedy.

But Kerry consistant record (for whatever reason) is to the left of Kennedy's.  It's a fact.

[12th Doctor]

ACU Ratings (lower=more liberal)

Didn't go through half of them, but I found some more liberal senators.

2003:
John Kerry - 13
Edward Kennedy -10
Barbara Boxer -10
Dianne Feinstein - 5
Charles Schumer - 10
Hillary Clinton - 10
James Jeffords - 10
Patty Murray - 10
Tom Daschle - 10
Jeff Bingaman - 10

2002:
John Kerry -20
Edward Kennedy -0
Barbara Boxer - 5
Christopher Dodd - 8
Charles Schumer - 10
Hillary Clinton - 10
James Jeffords - 6
Russell Feingold - 5
Herb Kohl - 15
Patty Murray - 10
Tim Johnson - 15
Ron Wyden - 15
Jeff Bingaman - 17
Jon Corzine - 5
Frank Lautenberg - 6
Mark Dayton - 11
Paul Sarbanes - 10

HA yeah, bring out the numbers from the years that Kerry was campaigning for President.  Those are a good measuring tool.

[12th Doctor]

Note that the actual location of the dot is not accurate, only in comparison of the other dots does it mean something

Went through a couple based on positions rather than the voting record.

John Kerry:


Barbara Boxer:


Ted Kennedy:


Jon Corzine:

That's great, look at Ralph Nader.  If I'm not mistaken, he is less liberal than Kerry, but more populist!!!!!  Who cares if Kerry is the Most Liberal or the 5 most Liberal?  The point is that he is damn liberal.  To damn Liberal for America.

[12th Doctor]

The 108th senate consists of:

83 White men
14 White women
1 Native American man
2 Pacific Islander men

I think this will fortunately be the LAST Senate without any blacks or Hispanics...next year we'll have Obama and Salazar (and possibly Martinez in FL), and them maybe Harold Ford from TN in 2006.  Both Obama and Ford could be in the Senate a LONG time.

Obama maybe.  Salazar I doubt.  Certainly Ford will never make it form Tennessee.  

Herman Cain in Georgia as well.

Has anyone seen a poll on the Cain race, by the way?

[12th Doctor]

what the case, let me just restate the point of this thread and hope it finally gets through:

DON'T SAY KERRY IS THE MOST LIBERAL SENATOR

that's it. nothing more nothing less. say he's too liberal for you fine. But don't say he is the single most liberal like some here have. that's all.

Well I certainly know that I never said this.  I know that he was acctually rated the most liberal one or two years.  His voting record is more liberal than Ted Kennedy's (Kennedy actually intruduced him as such once in the primary campaign if I recall) but I never said he was the most liberal (period).

Well, maybe I did, but I didn't really mean it.  But hen again I don't remember if I did ever say such a thing.

[12th Doctor]

what the case, let me just restate the point of this thread and hope it finally gets through:

DON'T SAY KERRY IS THE MOST LIBERAL SENATOR

that's it. nothing more nothing less. say he's too liberal for you fine. But don't say he is the single most liberal like some here have. that's all.

Well I certainly know that I never said this.  I know that he was acctually rated the most liberal one or two years.  His voting record is more liberal than Ted Kennedy's (Kennedy actually intruduced him as such once in the primary campaign if I recall) but I never said he was the most liberal (period).

Well, maybe I did, but I didn't really mean it.  But hen again I don't remember if I did ever say such a thing.

if his record is more liberal than Kennedy's why can't anyone bring up a single vote where he voted to the left of Kennedy?

and yes, he was rated most liberal last year. I've already explained why in the opening post. That year was a poor judge of his record.

No, he was also rated most liberal in 1993 or 1994 or something like that.  Anyway, it is hard to pinpoint a Senate vote like that because most legislative votes are on small issues, not huge ones.