Pat Toomey Blog #2

Toomey: How Does He Vote?

Conservative or Liberal Leanings

In a study done by Harry Enten of Pollster.com, Toomey's political leanings were observed. In the chart above, one can see that since 1995, when looking at all Members of Congress and their voting records, Toomey is very far to the right meaning he is very conservative in his political stance. Enten states, "Toomey ranked more conservative than 97.9% of all United States legislators since 1995. He had a more conservative voting record than J.D Hayworth, Jim DeMint, and was about as conservative as Jesse Helms. Only Tom Coburn and Tom Tancredo scored further to the right." As seen on the right Toomey shows to be a very conservative Republican which makes for an interesting situation in his state. Pennsylvania tneds to a usually strong blue or Democratic state, which means that Toomey may not be voting the way his constituents like. They elected him knowing he was conservative, but in order to survuve another election Toomey may have to start to vote more moderate otherwise the seat may not be his after the fall of 2016.

Another example of Toomey's conservative standings lies in his ranking among American's for Democratic Action. Each year the ADA chooses twenty issues they feel are most important and they look at each member of Congress votes on these issues. Based on whether or not the member votes according to the way the ADA would vote, the member does or does not receive five points and the higher the score the more aligned the member is with the ADA, with a max score of 100. In 2014 the ADA conducted their study and the results for Toomey are very interesting. Out of a possible 100 points Toomey only received 15. This shows once again, Toomey's strong conservative leanings and his inability or unwillingness to vote against the beliefs of the Republican party.

American Conservative Union

PA	U.S. Senate	Sr	Bob Casey, Jr.	Democratic	12%
***PA	U.S. Senate	Jr	Pat Toomey	Republican	100%
PA	U.S. House	1	Bob Brady	Democratic	0%
PA	U.S. House	2	Chaka Fattah, Sr.	Democratic	0%
PA	U.S. House	3	Mike Kelly	Republican	76%
PA	U.S. House	5	G.T. Thompson, Jr.	Republican	76%
PA	U.S. House	7	Pat Meehan	Republican	56%
PA	U.S. House	8	Mike Fitzpatrick	Republican	52%
PA	U.S. House	9	Bill Shuster	Republican	76%
PA	U.S. House	10	Tom Marino	Republican	75%
PA	U.S. House	11	Lou Barletta	Republican	72%
PA	U.S. House	14	Mike Doyle	Democratic	0%
PA	U.S. House	15	Charlie Dent	Republican	80%
PA	U.S. House	16	Joe Pitts	Republican	79%
PA	U.S. House	18	Tim Murphy	Republican	76%

Toomey has a high ranking in this Interest Group compared to other Members of Congress in his state, showing again his very conservative standings, in a more liberal state.

Other Interest Group Ratings for Toomey:

2014   NARAL Pro-Choice America - Positions 0%
2014   National Right to Life Committee - Positions (June 4, 2014) 100%
2014 American Veterinary Medical Association - Positions on Professional Advocacy 100%
2014 Food Policy Action - Positions 17%
2013-2014 Associated General Contractors of America - Lifetime Scores (Taxes) 100%
2013-2014 Associated General Contractors of America - Lifetime Scores (Other) 75%
2013-2014 Associated General Contractors of America - Lifetime Scores (Environment) 100%
2014 American Civil Liberties Union - Positions (captured January 3, 2014) 9%
2014   American Civil Liberties Union - Positions (captured June 17, 2014) 9%
2014   Friends Committee on National Legislation - Positions 0%
2014 Human Rights Campaign - Positions on Marriage 0%
2014   Liberty Guard - Positions 100

These are just a few Interest group ratings but they prove the point trying to be made. THe pint is that among conservative interest groups, Toomey tends to get very high ratings and approval, but with liberal interest groups, he recieves very poor ratings. However, this is not surprising considering Toomey's voting record.

Toomey's Voting Record on Important Issues

In order to understand where Toomey stands, one cannot only look at the charts that determine his leanings, but also his actual voting records that determine these charts and calculations. Toomey has rarely crossed the aisle and voted with the Democrats or the President which is not surprising based on his high conservative rankings in various polls. This could be good for Toomey in that he could receive high placement in important standing committees due to his party loyalty, but it could be harnful to him in that he might not get reelected in his state due to his extreme conservative beliefs. Here are some important issues that Toomey voted on, and how he voted...

Keystone Pipeline:

March 4, 2015	S 1	A Bill to Approve the Keystone XL Pipeline	Veto Override Failed - Senate (62 - 37)	Yea

Jan. 29, 2015	S 1	A Bill to Approve the Keystone XL Pipeline	Bill Passed - Senate (62 - 36)	Yea
Jan. 6, 2015	S 1	A Bill to Approve the Keystone XL Pipeline	Senate	Co-sponsor
Nov. 18, 2014	S 2280	A Bill to Approve the Keystone XL Pipeline	Bill Failed - Senate (59 - 41)	Yea

Toomey voted yes on all of these votes to approve the Keystone Pipeline. This vote is interesting because according to Chris Mooney of the Washington Post, the support on the pipeline is highly partisan in national regards, but when it becomes local, especially in the areas of where the pipeline will be laid, the stance on the issue becomes more unified regardless of party, and the support for the pipeline increases, favoring Republicans and Independents. Toomey voted for the pipeline, but in regards of this study, since Pennsylvania is a blue state, and not in close proximity to the actual pipeline his vote could cause issues for him.

Minimum Wage:

April 30, 2014

S 2223

Minimum Wage Fairness Act

Cloture Not Invoked - Senate
(54 - 42)

The increase in minimum wage was a prominent issue in Congress in 2014. President Obama was calling for an increase in the wage in order to help those on the poverty line. Kate Gibson discussed this issue on CBS Moneywatch where she discussed Obama's plan to increase the minimum wage to eight dollars an hour in 2016, then increase annually until reaching twelve dollars an hour by 2020. This was not the same plan voted on in 2014 but had similar ideas. However, Republicans were concerned about its effects. If the minimum wage was increases, they were concerned that it would also increase prices thus, having no positive effects. Toomey in this situation, voted agaisnt the President, who has been supported democratic Presidents in the last four elections.

Assault Weapons:

April 17, 2013

S Amdt 711

Prohibits the Sale of Assault Weapons

Amendment Rejected - Senate
(40 - 60)

Nay

Toomey, in no surprising move, voted against the ban on assault weapons in 2013. Due to his very conservative leanings he voted to allow the sale of assault weapons which goes along his party lines, however it does not coincide exactly with his constituents' beliefs. Pennsylvania has one of the toughest assault weapons regulations according to Peter Cameron of The Times Tribune. It is ranked the 10th strictest state on gun laws in the country. So by voting no on the assault weapons ban, Toomey not only goes against the President, who has the support of the Keystone State, but he aslo goes against a large majority of his constituents.

Presidential Support
Each Member of Congress is recorded in how they vote and whether or not they are in favor of or in opposition to the President. There are three categories for this which include: Presidential Support, Presidential Opposition, and Participation in Presidential Support Votes. Based on the way Members vote, we can get a feel for their support for the President. Here is Toomey's support...

1. Presidential Support. Percentage of recorded votes cast in 2014 in which President Barack Obama took a position and on which the member voted “yea” or “nay” in agreement with the president’s position. Failure to vote does not lower an individual’s score.
----Toomey: 56

2. Presidential Opposition. Percentage of recorded votes cast in 2014 in which President Barack Obama took a position and on which the member voted “yea” or “nay” in disagreement with the president’s position. Failure to vote does not lower an individual’s score.
----Toomey: 44

3. Participation in Presidential Support Votes. Percentage of recorded votes cast in 2014 on which President Barack Obama took a position and for which the member was eligible and present, and voted “yea” or “nay.” There were a total of 66 such recorded votes in the House.
----Toomey: 96

Overall, we can see that Toomey has a high level of participation in voting in Bills of the President, however, he shows very little support of the wishes and stances of the President. This makes him one of the more conservative Members of Congress, and also pits him against the President and many other Democrats. This will not only cause him some trouble in Congress, but it will also cause some tension when running for reelection. Toomey is going to have to work hard to prove that he is still a representative of his people in Pennsylvania. He has voted very conservative but, if he wished to stay in Congress, he may have to begin to vote a little more moderately in order to gain support and approval of those who really matter to Members of Congress: voters.