New American Releases Third "Freedom Index" for Current Congress

The New American
Jun. 23, 2010

The just-published (July 5) issue of The New American includes our third congressional scorecard (pdf) on the 111th Congress. The scorecard, entitled “The Freedom Index: A Congressional Scorecard Based on the U.S. Constitution,” rates Congressmen based on their adherence to constitutional principles of limited government, fiscal responsibility, national sovereignty, and a traditional foreign policy of avoiding foreign entanglements.

Each installment of the “Freedom Index” shows how U.S. Representatives and Senators voted on 10 key issues. Our just-published index includes votes on healthcare reform (ObamaCare), financial regulatory reform, extending provisions of the Patriot Act, withdrawing U.S. soldiers from Afghanistan, increasing the national debt ceiling, and jobs funding.

The average House score for our new index (votes 21-30) is a dismal 40 percent, and the average Senate score is 38 percent, despite the fact that every Congressman takes an oath to uphold the Constitution. In the House, three congressmen — J. Gresham Barrett of South Carolina, John Duncan of Tennessee, and Ron Paul of Texas — earned perfect scores, while in the Senate 12 Senators earned 100 percent. Of course, if congressmen would simply abide by their oaths of office, all of them should be earning top scores based on our "Freedom Index" ratings.

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