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WASHINGTON – Today, the highly respected National Journal Magazine released its annual “Vote Ratings” issue and Congressman Chris Carney (PA-10) has been ranked among the most bipartisan members of the 435-member House of Representatives. The nonpartisan magazine analyzed the 92 most significant votes in 2009 and ranked Congressman Carney the 11th most centrist member in the entire House of Representatives.
Congressman Carney, in his short time in Congress, has established himself as a pragmatic lawmaker who puts people in the region above political party. It is the third straight year since his election that he was named among the most bipartisan members in Congress by National Journal.
“I strive to be an independent voice for our region who represents the people, not a political party. I am glad to see those efforts recognized,” Congressman Carney said. “The families in our district want a representative who will put solving our country’s problems above ideology.”
In particular, the National Journal analysis ranked Congressman Carney the most fiscally conservative Democrat in the 19-member Pennsylvania House delegation. That finding is a point of pride for Congressman Carney, who played a key role in the recent enactment of pay-as-you-go rules in order to bring down the deficit. Pay-go rules force lawmakers to make an equal cut for every new dollar in spending.
Carney also recently voted to end the health insurance industry's exemption to the anti-trust laws and announced that broadband Internet access grants are available because of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. He defends his vote for the stimulus noting that in Bradford County alone 26,000 families got tax cuts, schools got $10 million and has paid for roads, bridges and sewers. That has been the story throughout the 10th Congressional District. This recession would be a lot worse if the government hadn't spent money to replace the demand that was sucked out of the economy because of the bank and mortgage collapse. Macroeconomics has never been a strong suit of my Republican friends.
The Republican challengers to Carney all sound the same. They oppose deficit spending but propose more tax cuts saying that is the only way to stimulate the economy. If that was the case the Bush tax cuts should have led us into a period of unending prosperity. In 1993
tax rates on the wealthy were increased a point or two and millions of jobs were created when President Clinton was in office.
16 hours ago
7 comments:
Exceptionally cool video...
Carney as bipartisan is hardly newsworthy. He's a Democrat in a conservative district. Of course he's going to step outside the liberal lockstep more than others. But when it came to the most important votes - massive government intrusion into healthcare and a horribly bloated and misdirected "stimulus" - he was right in Pelosi's pocket.
You are right that most of the Republicans only talk about tax cuts and balanced budgets. How curious, though, that you regard them as negatives. As for our current situation, if you place the blame on Bush-era tax cuts, it's you who is in serious need of reviewing your Macro-Economics textbook. ;)
Thanks for an engaging discussion as always.
The Bush era tax cuts did stimulate the economy. The subsequent War with Iraq is the problem. The government cut its revenue but increased its spending. The tax cuts work if spending is also reigned in. Fiscal conservatism, which all the Republicans do preach, and Professor Carney's bloated vote on stimulus does not. It's that simple.
Carney may a centrist on the bell curve, but as the whole graph has been sliding left for years, and especially so in the last two, it's ingenuous to use it to determine the reality of politics.
This recession would've been a lot better for the economy if the government hadn't stepped in way of mother nature. In fact if the government wouldn't have stuck it's fingers into the economy in the first place, there might not be any such thing as recession.
Government intervening in the market, such as letting the Fed rather than supply and demand (mother nature) determine interest rates, in the guise of stimulating the economy, is what caused this whole problem to begin with. That your macroeconomic link went to Keynesian econmoics is a joke. That's like having a political theory link go straight to Marxism.
Keynesian economics is tool that governments use to justify taking control.
The problem with the extra revenue generated by tax cuts, is that both the democrats and the republicans spend like drunken sailors the minute they see that it might be there. Both sides are so obsessed with being reelected and keeping control of the ATM that is the federal government that there is no rhyme or reason to what they do. At this point they blatantly pander to the vote.
Thank you for the opportunity to voice my opinion.
Wouldn't it be nice if we could increase revenue and decrease spending?
Both parties suck, because it is all about pandering and not about governing.
This rating of Carney has the Republican majority in his District dong flips. They will never beat Charney because he is a good Represntative who deserves to be in Washington. This bullshit about wanting the best is just that bull shit! These people want a Republican period and good rerpresentation gets no points. Live with it goofs!
You cannot judge Carney on votes that do not really matter, we must look at individual votes. He did the right thing on cap-and-trade and voted with his disrict but he voted with his party on health care. For anyone who has ever worked with a state legislature or Washington, the leadership will allow members to vote against the party if it will help them get reelected.
Lets see what is more important to Carney with the new health care vote, his district or his party.
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