Citizens Against Government Waste Names Senator McCain A “Taxpayer Hero”

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Citizens Against Government Waste Names Senator McCain A “Taxpayer Hero”

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste has named Senator McCain a “Taxpayer Hero” for scoring 99% on its 2009 Congressional scorecard. CCAGW also noted that Senator McCain has a “more impressive” fiscal record than his primary opponent, Congressman J.D. Hayworth

For Immediate Release

August 10, 2010

Taxpayer Watchdog Group Names Sen. John McCain a “Taxpayer Hero”
Scores 99 Percent on CCAGW’s Congressional Ratings

(Washington, D.C.) – The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) today honored Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) as a Taxpayer Hero for scoring 99 percent on its 2009 Congressional Ratings. The average for the entire House was 31 percent, and the average for the Senate was 39 percent; this makes Sen. McCain’s achievement that much more impressive. Since 1989, CCAGW has tracked roll call votes to separate the taxpayer advocates in Congress from those who favor wasteful programs and pork-barrel spending.

The 2009 Congressional Ratings cover the voting year 2009, the first session of the 111th Congress. CCAGW rated 120 key votes in the House and 74 in the Senate.

“There have been very few members of Congress over the years that have voted as consistently as Sen. McCain to eliminate wasteful spending, reduce the tax burden, and make government more accountable to taxpayers,” said CCAGW President Tom Schatz.

“He has been at the forefront of the effort to eliminate earmarks, by neither asking for nor ever receiving an earmark, as well as by offering amendments on the Senate floor to eliminate earmarks. He has been leading the battle to reduce government waste for so long that only three other senators who have served longer than one term
have a higher lifetime rating that his 89 percent. His record was built over a period of time that is more than twice as long as the 12 years spent in the House by his primary opponent, J.D. Hayworth, making Sen. McCain’s lifetime rating that much more impressive. There is no doubt that the taxpayers of Arizona have been well-served by Sen. McCain’s efforts over the years, and the 55,473 CCAGW members and supporters in Arizona join me in applauding his dedication to our mutual causes. There is every reason to be confident that his
exemplary voting record will continue should he be re-elected in November.”

CCAGW’s website, features the complete 2009 Congressional Ratings, including vote descriptions, scorecards for the House and Senate, and averages by chamber, party, and state delegation.

In the House, there were a total of seven “Taxpayer Super Heroes” with a grade of 100 percent. In 2008, there was one House member with a perfect score. In 2009, there were 89 “Taxpayer Heroes” with a grade of 80 percent or above, a 51 percent increase from the 59 in 2008. The big difference was in the number of members with a perfectly abysmal score of zero. In 2008 there were only 34. In 2009, however, the number of members with a score of zero skyrocketed to 105, which is 41 percent of the 256 House Democrats.

From 2006 through 2008, there were no “Taxpayer Super Heroes” (scoring 100 percent) in the Senate, but fortunately there were two in 2009, Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.). There were a total of 29 “Taxpayer Heroes,” 52 percent greater than the 14 in 2008.

The two next highest scores were achieved by Sens. McCain and Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) at 99 percent. There were no senators with a score of zero, compared to 17 in 2008.

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste is the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste, the nation’s largest nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.