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Dumped US reps labeled centrists
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Charlie Wilson
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John Boccieri
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Kathy Dahlkemper, Democrat U.S. Representative, PA-3
YOUNGSTOWN
They were voted out of Congress in the last election, partly because they were painted as liberals, but ex-U.S. Reps. Charlie Wilson, John Boccieri and Kathy Dahlkemper were among the most moderate U.S. House members, according to a ranking by the National Journal of key 2010 votes.
The annual report looks at key votes — 96 for senators and 93 for House members — to base its liberal-conservative ratings. The magazine/website has ranked congressional members annually since 1981.
The three ex-House members, all Democrats, are considered “centrists” by the National Journal. A centrist is considered someone with a composite liberal-conservative scores close to 50-50.
Wilson of St. Clairsville, who represented Ohio’s 6th District, was the 183rd most liberal member of the U.S. House and the 245th most conservative. He received a liberal-conservative score of 58.8-41.2 meaning he was more liberal than 58.8 percent of House members last year and more conservative than 41.2 percent of them.
Wilson lost the race for the 6th District — which includes all of Columbiana County and about half of Mahoning County — to Republican Bill Johnson of Poland.
Dahlkemper of Erie, who represented Pennsylvania’s 3rd District, was the third most centrist member of the House last year with a liberal-conservative score of 50.3-49.7. She was the 220th most liberal House member and 208th most conservative.
Dahlkemper lost the election in the 3rd District, which includes a portion of Mercer County, to Republican Bill Kelly of Butler.
Boccieri of Alliance, a former state senator from Mahoning County, was the 203rd most liberal House member and the 224th most conservative with a 53.7-46.3 score. Boccieri lost his re-election bid for Ohio’s 16th District to Republican Jim Renacci of Wadsworth.
All three voted in favor of the health-care bill, a hot-button issue in the last election.
U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Niles, D-17th, was by far the most liberal House member representing this area in 2010, according to the report.
Ryan was the 139th most liberal House member and the 289th most conservative with a 71.2-28.8 score.
Ryan represents most of Trumbull County and about half of Mahoning County.
Another centrist in the report is U.S. Rep. Jason Altmire of McCandless, Pa., D-4th with a 45.8-54.2 score. Altmire, whose district includes all of Lawrence County and a portion of Mercer County, was the 237th most liberal and 191st most conservative House member.
U.S. Rep. Steven C. LaTourette of Bainbridge, R-14th, was the 269th most liberal House member and the 245th most conservative with a 37-63 score. His district includes seven northern townships in Trumbull County.
On the U.S. Senate side, Sen. Sherrod Brown, an Ohio Democrat, was tied with eight other Democrats as the most liberal and the 86th most conservative with a 83.3-16.7 rating.
Now retired U.S. Sen. George V. Voinovich, an Ohio Republican, was the most liberal GOP in the Senate. That placed him as the 55th most liberal senator [everyone in front of him is a Democrat] and the 40th most conservative with a 39.3-60.7 score.
In Pennsylvania, U.S. Sen. Robert Casey Jr., a Democrat, was the 15th most liberal senator and the 78th most conservative with a 79.2-20.8 rating. Ex-U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, a Democrat who lost his party’s primary last year, was the 27th most liberal senator and the 68th most conservative with a 75.2-24.8 score.