Progressive ratings for Sen. Lincoln-- For ALL who need to remember the enemy

[BrentWil]

Scores are out of 100. The closer to 100 they rate, the more often they voted with the group on issues. Site this is coming from is http://www.electoral-vote.com/evp2008/Senate/senator_ratings-2005.html Ratings are from 2005, but this at least gives you an idea.


ACLU - American Civil Liberties Union 65
ADA - Americans for Democratic Action 95
CDF - Children's Defense Fund 67
LCV - League of Conservation Voters 65
NAACP - National Association for the Advancement of Colored People 85
NARAL - National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League 75
PTA - National Parent-Teacher Association 87
SEIU - Service Employees International Union 69



Clearly some dems did better. But not that bad. However, a Southern Republican will replace here. The highest rated Southern Republican is Sen. Lindsey Graham (AND John Boozeman is NO Lindsey Graham) Here are his ratings.

ACLU - American Civil Liberties Union 11
ADA - Americans for Democratic Action 20
CDF - Children's Defense Fund 11
LCV - League of Conservation Voters 20
NAACP - National Association for the Advancement of Colored People 0
NARAL - National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League 0
PTA - National Parent-Teacher Association 23
SEIU - Service Employees International Union 12



Elections mean something. Don't be dumbasses. There are PLENTY of very important votes where Sen Lincoln is with us. Don't throw it away for one thing.

[FSogol]

1. K & R. n/t

[zipplewrath]

2. Several things actually

And this is about 3 months too early. This is a lecture for October.

[BrentWil]

9. Kick it in the butt now

[hobbit709]

3. Sometimes you have to hold your nose.

But it doesn't mean that I'm happy about it. Of course most politicians are way to the right from me.

[Richardo]

4. "Don't be dumbasses"

I wish more DUers would take that sage advice. :thumbsup:

Great post, BrentWil! :patriot:

KnR :kick:

[bobbolink]

45. oh, yes... we ALWAYS take 'advice' from people who call us names.

:crazy:

[proud2BlibKansan]

87. Good point

[OHdem10]

5. I am not going to sweat it. The votes Lincoln cast with GOP were

some of the most important Legislation.

I predict the Republican will win in Arkansas. so why
worry.

Arkansas will pick the real Republican over a Fake Republican--
just watch. Bozeman is way ahead.

[MineralMan]

6. Good post, and worth thinking about.

[Art_from_Ark]

7. If you are appealing to Arkansas voters

I don't think any here, myself included, are going to vote for Boozman. I wanted Halter, but I'll still vote for Lincoln in the general.

[BrentWil]

13. Many have said they will write in someone or vote 3rd party in other threads...

This goes for other elections too... The enemy is the enemy. Keep your head in it.

[Art_from_Ark]

16. I'll never vote for Boozman

because I know that NW Arkansas Republican politicians are so far out in right field, they need a helicopter to get back to the dugout.

And I won't vote for someone that doesn't have a chance.

[iamthebandfanman]

25. now you know why the white house chose her...

they knew youd vote for her anyway...

i mean, like youd vote for a republican.

not that i have advice on how to break this cycle...

[Art_from_Ark]

77. I'm painfully aware of that

I had met Lincoln's predecessor, Dale Bumpers, on many occasions, and had written to him on several others about issues that were of special concern to me, and he seemed to be a very decent man with a commitment to the ordinary citizen. I have nothing but respect for the man. I was disappointed to hear that he was retiring from the Senate because after 24 years, he was fed up with the circus that the Senate had become, especially after the Clinton impeachment crap that was being fomented in part by fellow Arkansas senator Tim Hutchinson. I had hoped that his successor would at least try to follow in his footsteps, but it hasn't been the case. It really is irritating. And yet, the alternative is a Republican from NW Arkansas, the most right-wing part of the state.

[sinkingfeeling]

8. Thanks for posting this. I've been trying to tell people here just how bad Boozman (no 'e') is!

[TreasonousBastard]

10. Makes no difference to some-- she's never going to be pure enough, and...

if a Republican wins her seat, the mantra will be it's because she didn't listen to the dozen or so "real" Democrats down there.

Perceived to be moderate -- win most elections

Perceived to be conservative -- win some elections

Perceived to be liberal -- win very few elections

And that's just the way it is. Anyone is free to change things if they can figure out how.

[Coyote_Bandit]

11. Are you

a resident of Arkansas?

The choice between Blanche and Dollar Bill was left to the people of Arkansas. Their representative. Their choice.

Take care of your own backyard. Kansas ain't exactly a haven of liberal politicians.

[BrentWil]

14. No, but I vote Democratic whoever wins.. that is the deal.. it is about making what is best for

whatever situation.

[joeybee12]

12. She's a homophobe...n/t

[BrentWil]

19. Evidence?

[joeybee12]

46. Venture into the GLBT forum...do a search...Gays should not get

"special rights" Amazing how quickly some people are here to question this.

[Dappleganger]

68. Nope, just the DLC'ers

like the OP.

[moriah]

79. I question whether Boozman is really who you want instead of Lincoln.

If you feel strongly about gay rights, you should definitely help Lincoln keep the seat instead of letting it go to Boozman.

From OnTheIssues:

Lincoln scores 89% by the HRC on gay rights.

OnTheIssues.org interprets the 2005-2006 HRC scores as follows:

* 0% - 20%: opposes gay rights (approx. 207 members)
* 20% - 70%: mixed record on gay rights (approx. 84 members)
* 70%-100%: supports gay rights (approx. 177 members)

In addition, Lincoln:

Voted NO on constitutional ban of same-sex marriage.
Voted YES on adding sexual orientation to definition of hate crimes in 2002.
Voted YES on expanding hate crimes to include sexual orientation in 2000.

The same record as Ted Kennedy on votes regarding gay rights. The quote you have her on never reached the Senate because the house defeated it. Thanks, in part, to Boozman, who:

Voted NO on prohibiting job discrimination based on sexual orientation. (Nov 2007)
Voted YES on Constitutionally defining marriage as one-man-one-woman. (Jul 2006)
Voted YES on Constitutional Amendment banning same-sex marriage. (Sep 2004)
Is rated 0% by the HRC, indicating an anti-gay-rights stance.

[BrentWil]

90. Putting a Republican in is a sure fire way to advance civil rights..well if this was 1860, I guessNT

[LiberalArkie]

15. I am hoping that Lincoln got scared enough to change her viewpoints

[Dappleganger]

17. People like her quickly and conveniently forget.

They just ignore the ones who disagree with them, the ones she's running back over w/the bus again and again.

[BrentWil]

18. THAT was her ratings from 2005...

She seems to have kept her general voting record for a while now. She is a more conservative democrat from the south. We need to deal with it. That is reality and alot better then a Republican.

[Dappleganger]

33. It's no different than being a republican.

Being in FL I know how the south works quite well, and kidding yourself that "at least she's a democrat" is not going to do any long-term good. It's this mentality which needs to change. A real progressive democrat nearly beat her...THAT needs to be embraced and nurtured as much as possible.

[BrentWil]

63. Embrase it, in the primary in 6 years. But right now, we need to win. NT

[w4rma]

20. She insults her supporters and only votes our way when her votes aren't needed.

She fights us when her vote IS needed. I really could care less if she wins or loses the next race, since it is better to have an enemy to fight outright rather than a traitor sabotaging from within.

[BrentWil]

21. So voting with Americans for Democratic Action 95 percent of the time is only voting with them to

insult her supporters?

[w4rma]

22. These were votes that were not close and she was hiding in the crowd.

The votes that mattered, which were close ones, she *failed* on. A Republican would serve the Democratic Party's (not the DLC's, however) interests just as well as she has. And Democrats wouldn't have to fight a primary battle in 6 years, either.

[BrentWil]

23. First that is simply not true.. many of these votes were not close, if you check the record..

And this is the Democratic Party in Arkansas... it isn't like there isn't a strong chance that you won't get another Lincoln in 6 years, not some progressive hero.

[Dappleganger]

34. With that kind of an attitude, you have the Democratic Party you deserve. nt

[BrentWil]

37. With that type of attitude you are going to get the Republican party you deserve. nt

[Dappleganger]

43. Show me how that is worse.

See, that's what happens when the DLC and blue dogs put a stranglehold on the party. People like you actually think that you are getting a better deal, when in fact they've fooled you blind and sold you a bridge to nowhere.

[BrentWil]

64. Ask an Iraqi if it is better. NT

[Dappleganger]

67. Directly from Blanche Lincoln's website:

"n 2002, I supported a resolution in Congress to give the President authority to order U.S. military forces into Iraq, leading to the toppling of its ruthless dictator who was a menace to his neighbors and his own people. Since the war began, our troops, many thousands of them from Arkansas, have performed their mission with incredible bravery, precision and skill. Despite President Bush’s pronouncement over three years ago declaring major combat operations over, Iraq remains one of the most volatile places in the world while our troops continue to bravely serve in some of the most dangerous conditions imaginable."


Read more: http://lincoln.senate.gov/legislation/leg-issue-wariniraq.cfm


Case. Fucking. Closed.

[BrentWil]

81. It was a reference to people not thinking the election mattered between Bush and Gore in 2000

And pointing out there are many smaller issues that it is important to have an alley in office, even if she isn't an ally all the time.

[Sebastian Doyle]

41. ADA ratings are bullshit

They're always twisted to make DLC'ers look better. It's the oldest scam in the book.

Aside from stealing elections by refusing to open polling places, that is.

[Renew Deal]

86. What about a lifetime 19% rating from the American Conservative Union?

http://www.conservative.org/ratings/ratingsarchive/2009/2009%20Combined%20Ratings.html#AR

:shrug:

[sufrommich]

24. Sorry, you are making too much sense. nt

[stevenleser]

26. This is why I almost never get involved in fights to unseat Democratic incumbents

Any money or effort spent is much better placed behind an effort to defeat a Republican. That is the way I see it.

[Greyhound]

27. Percentage of party cooperation are meaningless and serve only to distract

and provide cover (like you present here).

What matters is which way they vote on which issues. Congress spend the majority of its time voting on "mother and apple pie" resolutions and sense of the Congress irrelevancies. Voting in favor of 10 unenforceable, weak financial "reforms" that does nothing to reform counts as a vote for "change" despite the fact that there is no change at all, while voting to pay the TARP blackmail only counts as 1 vote against "change".

[BrentWil]

29. The interests group listed represent a wide range of progressive issues and different types

of measures... again, see the forest, not a tree.

[Greyhound]

30. What a lovely demonstration of purposely ignoring the point.

I know you, and I highly recommend the anchovies.
:hi:

[sufrommich]

31. I believe the point was to compare her to her republican

opposition. Seems like a pretty good point to me.

[BrentWil]

32. Who do they think will win the Democratic nom in six years if she is defeated...

I mean, crap, it isn't like they have any sense of reality. It is the SOUTH. Ted Kennedy isn't winning down there. Sorry. Take what you can get and move on.

[Greyhound]

39. You're a southerner?

[BrentWil]

42. Originally.. lived alot of places

[Greyhound]

80. So you do read the thread. Why not address the issue raised?

These "ratings" are nothing but arithmetic masturbation and are meaningless as measurement of how one has chosen to govern and for whom. Straight count of votes cast are meaningless.

[BrentWil]

93. They are a measure of how much progressive interests group believe in someone... I take the world of

the ACLU, who fight every day for freedom, over judgement. Sorry

[JackDragna]

28. She may not be THE enemy, but she is AN enemy.

You don't turn your back on health care reform and unions like she has. I don't really care about her favorable ratings from liberal organizations: if anything, the DINOs are more than willing to throw true liberals a bone while supporting regressive policies that favor the wealthy elite.

[freddie mertz]

35. She is almost certainly going to lose anyway.

I won't be flushing any of my donations down the toilet on her behalf,l et's just put it that way.

[BrentWil]

36. Nothing like a defeatist attitude NT

[freddie mertz]

52. I'm not defeatist. And I hate to lose the seat. BUT....

I won't be sad to see her go, either.

[Ardent15]

38. Sorry, the "lesser of two evils" meme is very old and tired

I don't live in Arkansas, but I wouldn't vote for either a Republican or a Republican-lite.

[Individualist]

40. +1

[bobbolink]

44. I was interested until you decided to calll people "dumbasses". Name-calling

isn't going to get you friends.

We had it with the RW calling us names, and won't take any more.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

[BrentWil]

48. I called a behavior that.. not a single person NT

[bobbolink]

50. The word you used is a NOUN. Is this how you canvass for votes?

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

[BrentWil]

62. I did not call one person that. Nor have I in the conversation that has taken place after it NT

[bobbolink]

76. Yes, it was a wonderful example of broad-brushing. Also against the rules.

Obliquely referring to many people here is NOT a way to escape the rules.

There is no point in arguing with you. You are clearly in defensive mode, and nothing will move you from that. Kinda like the politicians we so dearly love.

Just remember, when you want people to vote "your way", calling them out isn't a very good way to convert them.

[bobbolink]

51. The word you used is a NOUN. Is this how you canvass for votes?

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

[tmyers09]

58. At least he didn't call us "fucking retards".

:sarcasm:

[tmyers09]

59. It is not ALL about voting for the final product.

Quite a bit of it is how you push and shape the legislation during the actual formation of the bill. And until this primary, she greatly watered down the legislation. And now that the primary is over, she'll likely go back to doing the same old shit, knowing that she's safely the Democratic candidate in November (with the help of the closing of strategic polling locations).

[Enrique]

47. Rahm, is that you?

next you'll be telling us that "Obama is the most progressive president ever".

[BrentWil]

49. He is the most progressive that we were going to get in office at this point in our history NT

[mmonk]

53. Sorry but I've had enough.

Squeeky wheels get oiled. Go alongs get rolled and have insults thrown at them.

[branders seine]

54. even your partial list of mainstream groups yields an average rating of 67.88.

I'm just a simple schoolteacher, but in my classes, 68% is a D. Isn't a Senator who gets D's exactly the kind of person who should be replaced?

[Bodhi BloodWave]

55. Not when the replacement would score an F >.>

[branders seine]

73. Try to be constructive. How do we move Lincoln to start earning

100's?

[BrentWil]

66. By someone that will get a 4%? NT

[donco6]

56. LOL! Her scores totally SUCK!

You're really putting these up in comparison to real Dems? Seriously?

[BrentWil]

61. Did I say that? I am comparing her to what the alternative is. A southern GOPer. NT

[newspeak]

85. and, that's the trouble, it's been the "alternative" for way too long

It seems for quite awhile we've been voting the "the lesser of two evils." And, we still get stuck with repuke policies, repuke wars. No matter who is in office, they both keep the corporate agenda going. So, when is enough, enough? Because both sides are damaging mainstreet to maintain the status quo.

[HughMoran]

65. ...comparison to the only other choice now

A Republican.

[Dappleganger]

69. +100000

[laughingliberal]

57. If the one thing is support for workers, I weigh that very heavily. Being as how I am one. nt

[tmyers09]

60. It is not ALL about voting for the final product.

Quite a bit of it is how you push and shape the legislation during the actual formation of the bill. And until this primary, she greatly watered down the legislation. And now that the primary is over, she'll likely go back to doing the same old shit, knowing that she's safely the Democratic candidate in November (with the help of the closing of strategic polling locations).

[William Z. Foster]

70. this just tells us what a mess everything is

If we can have a politician with these scores and recommendations, yet who opposes public health care and Unions, that tells you there is something seriously wrong with the whole set up.

This is like telling us that a box of cereal is not empty because it says "cereal" on the box.

But we should be happy with the empty box, because the alternative brand says "rat poison" on the box. I suspect it is empty, as well.

[Dappleganger]

71. Exactly.

We in FL have had to smell that DLC/blue dog stench for awhile, and quite honestly their shit stinks just as badly as the republicans.

Don't settle just because there's a (D) next to the name.

[William Z. Foster]

72. it is worse than that

Look at all of those organizations that have bought into this failed and weak approach to politics. People underestimate the problem when they think we can merely run progressive alternatives in primaries. Until and unless we confront the entire "working within the system" go-along-to-get-along baby-steps approach, we will continue to get the same results.

[Dappleganger]

74. There's a whole mentality to change.

But the only way to change it is to continue putting up real progressives, and change the Dem party leadership within each state. FL's Dem leadership is a HUGE problem. :(

[William Z. Foster]

75. maybe

But sooner or later they all cave. What difference does it make what they supposedly "believe?" There is something rotten that cannot be fixed by trying to change people's beliefs or by picking candidates based on their supposed beliefs. When beliefs meet being "practical" and "realistic" those beautiful progressive beliefs are all crushed under the corporate boots like dry leaves.

[BrentWil]

82. Live in the world you are in, not in another world

You aren't going to have this revolution. The ballot and voting takes that away from the left. It is a battle over what is practical, not what you want. Revolution was practical in 1917, today any sort of violence would not be tolerated by the masses.

[donco6]

83. Yeah, because hoping in change is obviously so passe.

Let's resign ourselves to the status quo - after all, that - by definition - is the "world we're in."

[BrentWil]

89. Slow change of the status quo is the reality.. the best you can hope is that the World will be a...

little bit better of a place. That is it. It is a very hard, long, but workable road.

[donco6]

91. What a sad, small world you live in.

And there ain't no way in hell I'll ever fall for that bullshit.

[BrentWil]

92. A pragmatic and real world that understands the amount of work and length of time real change takes

Heres to hoping you are right..

[Name removed]

78. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[alvingreene2010]

84. Our campaign

You can rest assured that the Alvin Greene campaign for South Carolina senator will be a progressive campaign based on progressive issues, like getting people back to work.

[Jennicut]

88. Blue Dog vs Hardcore Rethug. Not a great choice but obviously the Rethug is worse.

That being said, Lincoln is a goner. Arkansas is just too conservative right now. Halter tried and he is not even a real progressive. Union representation is so small there, the only way to get a less conservative Dem is to build on some new coalitions. A lot of work needs to be done there. If the polls are real bad there for Lincoln, write in a 3rd party candidate. Of course, the "polls" are not always accurate but it does not look good for her.