Would that St. John were facing this "liberal"

No, this post isn't about the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, also known as McCain-Feingold. It might have been a step in the right direction yet I'll agree it has several flaws. Another post for another day perhaps? With a tip of the tam to Media Matters for sending me down this path, I'll tackle the notion that Barack Obama is some sort of radical leftist.

For some time I've been hearing and reading in the so called liberal mainstream media themes based around claims from The National Journal that Barack Obama is the most liberal member of the Senate. They (thus then the RNC and Bu$hCo and ...) had John Kerry tapped in 2004. They claimed back in 2004 some discomfort that their rankings had been turned into a talking point yet they did the same thing this cycle. Their methodology is flawed beyond any semblance of professionalism. Here's some background on their owner David G. Bradley, surely one of the swells that might just as soon keep the GOP in power.

Here's a more accurate ranking from Professors Jeff Lewis and Keith Poole that shows Russ Feingold, my hero indeed, earning the #1 spot. Chris Dodd is #2. Bernie Sanders is #3. Senator Obama is way down in the ten spot for the left. Please also note that John McCain is at that same level on the right. He's no Bomb Thrower like Jim Demint or James Inhofe. With Tom Coburn at #3 St. John has a long ways to go yet that's a scary list of folks he's to the right of. Even Alabama's Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III is only at #20. Huggy Bear is trying his best to both embrace Bu$hCo and also keep The Maverick reputation intact. I certainly don't think this will be an easy task yet with the media giving his such cover it might be somewhat easier.

I'm certainly going to support Senator Obama and yet RDF, Gore, Dodd, Edwards, ... would have been my choices. They are solid Progressives/Liberals and they'd make Huggy Bear earn every yard. John Gunn