Who Says Kerry Is The "Most Liberal"

[KharmaTrain]

This meme is being thrown around as gospel...just like the "Gore invented the Internet" crap did in 2000, and it's time to stuff this noise before it starts to stick like glue.

Last night, Jon Stewart showed clips of repugnican parrots sprouting the same talking point..."Kerry is the most liberal senator". Now how is that based? Who does this rating come from? How do other Senators rate...ALL the Senators? What is the criteria for compiling this ranking?

Simple questions of credibility here. One that needs to be clarified. Maybe it has and I haven't seen it. If it's from an independent source...if such a thing exists...then let's set the record straight. If it's from a wingnut "think tank"...a propaganda machine...let's get that record and the "think tank's" agenda out there as well.

[Sporadicus]

1. Liberally Speaking

Originally published on Wednesday, July 14


President Bush said that John Edwards, John Kerry’s choice for vice president on the Democratic ticket, is “... a fellow lawyer who is the fourth most liberal member of the Senate. ...”

The president bases his information on ratings as reported by the independent National Journal, which reflects Sen. Edwards’ votes on 40 Senate votes during the 2003 sessions.

Of course Mr. Bush omits that the National Journal has pointed out that Edwards’ entire voting record “puts him in the moderate wing of his party.”

For what it is worth, Edwards was the 31st most liberal senator in 1999, the 19th most liberal senator in 2000, the 35th most liberal senator in 2001 and the 40th most liberal senator in 2002.

George Bush knows this. So do Vice President Dick Cheney, Rush Limbaugh, William A. Rusher, and all the others who have been repeatedly saying what they know not to be true.

http://www.claremoreprogress.com/archive/article15004

The RW doesn't even attempt to lie with any effort toward credibility.

[KharmaTrain]

2. Edwards Voted With Helms More Than 50% Of The Time

I heard a Charlotte Observer reporter cite this the other day. Of course why let the truth get in the way of a Rovian lie?

[porphyrian]

3. Stupid Uninformed People? People With An Agenda? Liars? -n/t

[Sporadicus]

4. A Link to the Original Article

Kerry And Edwards
On the night of February 17, after finishing a surprisingly close second to Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., in the Wisconsin primary, Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., made the rounds of television interviews and repeated what has become a familiar theme. Asked on CNN about his campaign strategy, Edwards replied that he planned to emphasize the contrasts between him and the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination.

"I think it's important for people to know the differences between us," Edwards said. "I like and respect John Kerry very much. And I think he feels the same way about me. But we have differences." Edwards added a few moments later: "There are clear differences between us. Now those differences will become more apparent to Democratic voters."

Judging by National Journal's congressional vote ratings, however, Kerry and Edwards aren't all that different, at least not when it comes to how they voted on key issues before the Senate last year. The results of the vote ratings show that Kerry was the most liberal senator in 2003, with a composite liberal score of 96.5. But Edwards wasn't far behind: He had a 2003 composite liberal score of 94.5, making him the fourth-most-liberal senator.

National Journal's vote ratings rank members of Congress on how they vote relative to each other on a conservative-to-liberal scale in each chamber. The scores, which have been compiled each year since 1981, are based on lawmakers' votes in three areas: economic policy, social policy, and foreign policy. The scores are determined by a computer-assisted calculation that ranks members from one end of the ideological spectrum to the other, based on key votes -- 62 in the Senate in 2003 -- selected by National Journal reporters and editors. (For more details on how the vote ratings are calculated, see box below.)

more...

http://nationaljournal.com/about/njweekly/stories/2004/0227nj1.htm

Not that any of this matters to me. Kerry's and Edwards' rankings make them just that more attractive as candidates to me.

[KharmaTrain]

8. OK...Whose The National Journal???

Sorry to be a smartass on this, but who owns and operates this publication and how has their materials been used in the past?

It's easy to find those here who think Kerry and Edwards are too moderate or downright conservative. Thus the perspective needs to be clearly shown.

Cheers.

[Sporadicus]

9. I Haven't Researched Them Yet

but any claims to nonpartisanship are taken with a grain of salt.

[KharmaTrain]

Most Rankings Are Conservatives

Most the lists I ever hear about a voting record is used by right wing groups...notching wedge issues like abortion, school prayer and so on that is used in opposition research on an opponent. I suspect we're seeing the fruits of this...the seed planted and the lie sprouting into an assumption.

Many of these rankings are used for the "voter guides" that go to churches...thus the questions of the source (still undetermined...and I've tried to google around myself) and the criteria of these rankings.

Thanks for your reply.

[Sporadicus]

13. I Recall a Reference to the Brookings Institution

in my searching for the original National Journal article. That may be a good place to start.

[RebelOne]

5. Sean Insanity says it at least twice a day

on his radio show. And he states that Edwards is the 4th most liberal.

[NicRic]

6. remember Clintons re-election....

at one of the debates ,someone asked him about the attempts to brand him with the "liberal" label. He response was he did not understand why the repuks ,always break out that word, except they cannot argue the issuses honestly ,cause the are not in line with most americans stand on the issuses. Well not much has changed ,certainly bush cant run on his terrible record. I also believe we should make more out of his being off almost 1/2 of his frist year in office. Who can get a new job and then take alomost 50% of the time in their frist year off ,the word pink slip comes to mind ,hopefully thats what he will be getting after the next election ,this is the worst of the worst,White House ever ,if this guys wins re-election ,it may take me a year or more to lift my head out of my hands ! I will come to the conclusion that the dumbing down of the American voter was a sucess !

[tjwash]

7. OMG, that's the most awful thing anyone can say about a person!

OH THE HORROR! JHC, the fucking whore press has everyone so brainwashed now, they actually think that is a bad thing to say about a person.


lib·er·al
Pronunciation: 'li-b(&-)r&l
Function: adjective

synonyms LIBERAL, GENEROUS, BOUNTIFUL, MUNIFICENT mean giving or given freely and unstintingly. LIBERAL suggests openhandedness in the giver and largeness in the thing or amount given <a teacher liberal with her praise>

Marked by generosity : OPENHANDED <a liberal giver> b : given or provided in a generous and openhanded way <a liberal meal> c : AMPLE, FULL.

BROAD-MINDED; especially : not bound by authoritarianism, orthodoxy, or traditional forms.

Of, favoring, or based upon the principles of liberalism b capitalized : of or constituting a political party advocating or associated with the principles of political liberalism; especially : of or constituting a political party in the United Kingdom associated with ideals of individual especially economic freedom, greater individual participation in government, and constitutional, political, and administrative reforms designed to secure these objectives.

Synonyms LIBERAL, GENEROUS, BOUNTIFUL, MUNIFICENT mean giving or given freely and unstintingly. LIBERAL suggests openhandedness in the giver and largeness in the thing or amount given <a teacher liberal with her praise>

[TreasonousBastard]

10. Well, here ya go...

ADA loves him:

http://www.adaction.org/KerryEdwardsVR.htm

As I've posted before, Kerry had the highest ADA rating of any of the congresscritters in the primary. Higher than Kucinich, even.

Kerry is absolutely, positively, a liberal.

Now, I suppose everyone realizes that the other side is going to be saying that this is a BAD thing. And they most certainly are saying that.

So, we could try to get it out that he's not a liberal, but that would be a lie.

Better we should get it out that he's the good sort of liberal. The kind of liberal that will make sure your kids don't get poisoned by the water while still not raising your taxes.

What the hell's wrong with being a liberal anyway? What have conservatives done for anyone lately?

[KharmaTrain]

12. Buzzwords...Almost Pavlovian

When you ask wingnut what a liberal is, you can almost get a knee-jerk laundry list of time worn names...all negative. Then once you go issue by issue things tend to change. They can use the labels yet not define it...they can throw a term around without understanding that the same label may apply to them, but on another issue...abortion is a great example, as is the gay marriage ammendment fiasco.

The bottom line for the GOOP spin machine is to divide...use divisiveness as their weapon and inclusiveness as the way to keep their troops in line. They do it with simple images and simple lies backed by unsubstantiated, simple "facts" like this one.

I prefer to call myself a Progressive, as I run don't agree with fully social state as much as a fully "conservative" one like what exists now. I see many here that are social liberals and fiscal conservatives...Clinton followed this path a majority of his Precidency...and represents a constituency that, as far as I'm concerned, fall outside many of the "traditional" labels of "liberal".

Personally I admire those who stand up and are proud to call themselves "liberals" in the face of these goons, and I will fall into that catagory when given an either/or scenario every time. I'm proud when I do that and that liberal, progressive and realist should be positive assets of being Democrats and ones we all should show great pride in.

[emulatorloo]

11. More links from Americans for Democratic Action - a liberal lobby group

Here is a page where they did lifetime ratings of the Dem Primary Candidates, and the issues they rated on:

http://www.adaction.org/Campaign2004/2004PR_1/2004pr_1.HTM

Here is homepage so you can see thier credentials. They abhor Bush and are for all the right things.

http://www.adaction.org/

[ClassWarrior]

15. Nooooooooooo!!!...

Don't do their research for them!!! That's agreeing to do battle on THEIR turf. Just laugh in their faces and call them on their lies. Tell them to PROVE it with facts.

(thinking the guy below is wayyy more liberal than Sen. Kerry)

[emulatorloo]

17. The problem is they have demonized the word "liberal" - Bush is the one

who is "out of the mainstream."

Just show them a chart of deficits under Bush and go frm there.

[ClassWarrior]

14. Remember the battleground is moderate voters.

Just say, "Do you believe for one moment that if any other Senator was the Democratic candidate, these muckraking liars wouldn't be calling HIM or HER the most liberal member of the Senate??"

[dolo amber]

16. See, this is so interesting

I've heard Tucker Carlson among others playing up the *similarities* between Bush and Kerry/Edwards i.e. they both voted w/Bush on the war, the Patriot Act etc. To paraphrase Carlson on an NPR interview w/William F. Buckley I heard the other day:

"They're both so centrist. There's just not that much difference between the two (Bush/Kerry). I just don't see any reason to switch now when either way, you're getting just about the same thing." (quotes mine)

Well, which is it? Is Kerry the liberal Satan or the *same* as Bush? They really need to get their talking points on the same page, they're giving me a headache. :crazy: