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How Liberal Interest Groups Rate the Senators (2007)


Many interest groups rate senators on how they vote. Well-known groups that issue such ratings include Americans for Democratic Action (a progressive group) and the American Conservative Union (a conservative group). In the table below, we give the ratings of seven such groups and the mean value for each senator. However, the ratings are not completely independent. Usually senators who get a good rating from the ADA get a bad rating from the ACU and vice versa. If we used four progressive groups and four conservative groups, every senator would probably get a score of 50%--not very interesting. To avoid this problem, we have only used (relatively) progressive groups. If you are a progressive, a senator with a high score is a good senator (supports everything progressive). If you are a conservative, a senator with a low score is a good senator (opposes everything progressive). In this way the differences between the senators stand out clearly. The table below is sorted on mean rating. Additional ratings from other interest groups can be found at www.vote-smart.org.

The seven groups used in this study are:

ACLU - American Civil Liberties Union
ADA - Americans for Democratic Action
CDF - Children's Defense Fund
LCV - League of Conservation Voters
NAACP - National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
NARAL - National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League
SEIU - Service Employees International Union

The data is available for download in .csv format so you can slice and dice the data as you wish. The ratings are for 2007. For Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), some of his votes were made as a House member before he was appointed to the Senate.

Thanks to Mike Martin for collecting the data.

The 2005 senator ratings are available here.

Senator State ACLU ADA CDF LCV NAACP NARAL SEIU Mean
Ben Cardin (D) Maryland 91% 95% 100% 93% 100% 100% 91% 96%
Russ Feingold (D) Wisconsin 91% 95% 100% 93% 100% 100% 91% 96%
Bob Menendez (D) New Jersey 91% 95% 100% 93% 100% 100% 91% 96%
Jack Reed (D) Rhode Island 91% 95% 100% 93% 100% 100% 91% 96%
Daniel Akaka (D) Hawaii 91% 95% 100% 87% 93% 100% 91% 94%
Jeff Bingaman (D) New Mexico 91% 90% 100% 93% 100% 100% 83% 94%
Sherrod Brown (D) Ohio 91% 95% 100% 87% 100% 100% 83% 94%
Dick Durbin (D) Illinois 82% 95% 100% 93% 100% 100% 91% 94%
Tom Harkin (D) Iowa 90% 95% 100% 87% 100% 100% 83% 94%
Frank Lautenberg (D) New Jersey 86% 90% 100% 93% 100% 100% 91% 94%
Patrick Leahy (D) Vermont 91% 95% 100% 80% 100% 100% 91% 94%
Patty Murray (D) Washington 90% 90% 100% 87% 100% 100% 91% 94%
Sheldon Whitehouse (D) Rhode Island 82% 95% 100% 93% 100% 100% 91% 94%
Maria Cantwell (D) Washington 91% 95% 90% 87% 100% 100% 91% 93%
Charles Schumer (D) New York 91% 90% 90% 93% 87% 100% 100% 93%
Ron Wyden (D) Oregon 91% 95% 90% 87% 100% 100% 91% 93%
John Kerry (D) Massachusetts 90% 90% 90% 93% 100% 90% 90% 92%
Herbert Kohl (D) Wisconsin 64% 95% 100% 93% 100% 100% 91% 92%
Bernard Sanders (I) Vermont 91% 95% 90% 93% 100% 100% 75% 92%
Carl Levin (D) Michigan 82% 95% 100% 67% 100% 100% 90% 91%
Harry Reid (D) Nevada 82% 85% 100% 87% 100% 100% 83% 91%
Bob Casey (D) Pennsylvania 73% 100% 100% 100% 100% 65% 91% 90%
Amy Klobuchar (D) Minnesota 73% 100% 100% 67% 100% 100% 91% 90%
Debbie Stabenow (D) Michigan 86% 100% 100% 67% 100% 100% 75% 90%
Byron Dorgan (D) North Dakota 100% 85% 90% 87% 93% 100% 66% 89%
Barbara Boxer (D) California 80% 80% 90% 80% 93% 100% 91% 88%
Barbara Mikulski (D) Maryland 45% 85% 100% 93% 100% 100% 91% 88%
Thomas Carper (D) Delaware 57% 85% 90% 93% 93% 100% 91% 87%
Edward Kennedy (D) Massachusetts 82% 85% 90% 93% 80% 90% 90% 87%
Bill Nelson (D) Florida 36% 90% 90% 100% 100% 100% 91% 87%
Jon Tester (D) Montana 91% 95% 80% 80% 100% 100% 66% 87%
Evan Bayh (D) Indiana 55% 95% 100% 73% 93% 100% 83% 86%
Diannne Feinstein (D) California 55% 90% 100% 87% 87% 100% 81% 86%
Ken Salazar(D) Colorado 64% 85% 90% 73% 100% 100% 91% 86%
Daniel Inouye (D) Hawaii 36% 90% 100% 80% 100% 100% 91% 85%
James Webb (D) Virginia 55% 85% 90% 87% 93% 100% 75% 84%
John Rockefeller (D) West Virginia 55% 85% 100% 73% 93% 100% 75% 83%
Hillary Clinton (D) New York 82% 75% 70% 73% N/A 100% 91% 82%
Claire McCaskill (D) Missouri 64% 90% 80% 73% 100% 100% 66% 82%
Max Baucus (D) Montana 91% 80% 80% 67% 93% 100% 58% 81%
Robert Byrd (D) West Virginia 82% 80% 90% 73% 87% 100% 54% 81%
Barack Obama (D) Illinois 88% 75% 60% 67% N/A 100% 90% 80%
Kent Conrad (D) North Dakota 64% 80% 90% 73% 87% 75% 75% 78%
Joseph Lieberman (I) Connecticut 27% 70% 100% 93% 87% 100% 72% 78%
Christopher Dodd (D) Connecticut 80% 70% 60% 60% N/A 100% 88% 76%
Mark Pryor (D) Arkansas 45% 70% 90% 60% 93% 100% 66% 75%
Olympia Snowe (R) Maine 55% 60% 90% 80% 80% 100% 58% 75%
Joe Biden (D) Delaware 88% 75% 50% 67% N/A 75% 90% 74%
Blanche Lincoln (D) Arkansas 40% 90% 80% 67% 93% 60% 91% 74%
Susan Collins (R) Maine 45% 55% 90% 100% 67% 100% 50% 72%
Mary Landrieu (D) Louisiana 55% 80% 80% 53% 93% 65% 66% 70%
Ben Nelson (D) Nebraska 45% 75% 90% 67% 80% 25% 83% 66%
Arlen Specter (R) Pennsylvania 36% 60% 70% 60% 73% 100% 41% 63%
Tim Johnson (D) South Dakota 43% 40% 50% 33% 33% 90% 100% 56%
Gordon Smith (R) Oregon 36% 55% 70% 73% 53% 40% 50% 54%
Richard Lugar (R) Indiana 30% 45% 80% 53% 47% 40% 50% 49%
Norm Coleman (R) Minnesota 18% 50% 80% 33% 67% 0% 63% 44%
Lisa Murkowski (R) Alaska 27% 30% 60% 40% 53% 75% 25% 44%
Ted Stevens (R) Alaska 18% 25% 70% 27% 33% 75% 25% 39%
John Warner (R) Virginia 27% 35% 60% 47% 33% 40% 25% 38%
Craig Thomas (R) (d. 2007) Wyoming 100% N/A 50% 0% 20% N/A 0% 34%
Orrin Hatch (R) Utah 18% 30% 70% 13% 53% 0% 45% 33%
John Sununu (R) New Hampshire 36% 15% 60% 53% 40% 0% 25% 33%
Charles Grassley (R) Iowa 18% 30% 60% 33% 47% 0% 25% 30%
George Voinovich (R) Ohio 27% 25% 50% 20% 53% 0% 16% 27%
Lamar Alexander (R) Tennessee 20% 20% 60% 33% 33% 0% 16% 26%
Bob Corker (GOP Tennessee 9% 20% 60% 27% 33% 0% 25% 25%
Pete Domenici (R) New Mexico 9% 25% 60% 20% 47% 0% 16% 25%
Chuck Hagel (R) Nebraska 27% 30% 40% 20% 20% 0% 41% 25%
Kay Bailey Hutchison (R) Texas 9% 20% 70% 7% 40% 0% 25% 24%
Kit Bond (R) Missouri 9% 25% 50% 0% 27% 25% 16% 22%
Trent Lott (R) (resigned) Mississippi 17% 15% 50% N/A N/A 0% 16% 20%
Robert Bennett (R) Utah 9% 15% 50% 7% 33% 0% 25% 20%
Judd Gregg (R) New Hampshire 20% 10% 30% 60% 13% 0% 8% 20%
John Thune (R) South Dakota 9% 20% 40% 33% 27% 0% 8% 20%
Larry Craig (R) Idaho 22% 15% 50% 13% 13% 0% 16% 18%
John Barrasso (R) Wyoming N/A 10% 33% 33% N/A 0% 0% 15%
Mel Martinez (R) Florida 9% 20% 50% 13% 13% 0% 16% 17%
Richard Shelby (R) Alabama 18% 20% 40% 7% 27% 0% 8% 17%
Elizabeth Dole (R) North Carolina 18% 15% 40% 7% 27% 0% 8% 16%
Pat Roberts (R) Kansas 9% 20% 40% 0% 27% 0% 16% 16%
Jeff Sessions (R) Alabama 18% 10% 40% 13% 20% 0% 8% 16%
Saxby Chambliss (R) Georgia 10% 10% 40% 7% 27% 0% 8% 15%
Jim Bunning (R) Kentucky 20% 10% 30% 7% 13% 0% 16% 14%
Thad Cochran (R) Mississippi 9% 15% 50% 0% 27% 0% 0% 14%
Mike Crapo (GOP Idaho 18% 15% 30% 13% 20% 0% 0% 14%
John Ensign (R) Nevada 9% 0% 40% 33% 7% 0% 8% 14%
Lindsey Graham (R) South Carolina 14% 20% 30% 7% 20% 0% 9% 14%
Johnny Isakson (R) Georgia 9% 10% 40% 7% 27% 0% 8% 14%
Michael Enzi (R) Wyoming 18% 10% 40% 13% N/A 0% 0% 14%
Mitch McConnell (R) Kentucky 9% 10% 30% 7% 27% 0% 8% 13%
Sam Brownback (R) Kansas 0% 5% 40% 7% N/A 0% 12% 11%
Wayne Allard (R) Colorado 9% 10% 30% 20% 7% 0% 0% 11%
John Cornyn (R) Texas 9% 15% 40% 0% 13% 0% 0% 11%
Richard Burr (R) North Carolina 9% 0% 30% 7% 13% 0% 8% 10%
David Vitter (R) Louisiana 18% 10% 20% 0% 13% 0% 9% 10%
Jon Kyl (R) Arizona 9% 5% 30% 13% 0% 0% 8% 9%
John McCain (R) Arizona 17% 10% 10% 0% N/A 0% 14% 9%
Tom Coburn (R) Oklahoma 18% 5% 20% 7% 0% 0% 8% 8%
Jim DeMint (R) South Carolina 18% 0% 20% 7% 0% 0% 8% 8%
James Inhofe (R) Oklahoma 18% 10% 20% 0% 0% 0% 8% 8%
Roger Wicker (R) Mississippi 0% N/A 20% 5% N/A N/A N/A 3%

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