"She is as liberal as Elizabeth Warren and barely more moderate than Bernie Sanders."
-Nate Silver, 538 Blog
For the better part of the past two decades Hillary Clinton has been under siege. Her life and the lives of her family and associates have been under a microscope and observed by those hungry to find the silver bullet that will bring them down. And ever since ‘Hillary-Care’ one of the most common critiques from the right was just how liberal Hillary was.
But now Hillary faces a new critique: That she’s too conservative.
As Vice President Biden mulls entering the field the first question Clinton’s critics should ask (if their concern over Hillary’s supposed conservatism) is: Where does the Vice President fall, ideologically, compared to Clinton?
Independent non-partisan analysis by GovTrak.us, a group run by a data expert that receives no funding apart from online advertising, reveals that, in fact:
Vice President Joseph Biden is MORE conservative than Secretary Hillary Clinton.
But this shouldn’t come as a surprise since every independent analysis of Secretary Clinton’s record and rhetoric indicates she is a consistent liberal on par with Elizabeth Warren, and to the left of both President Obama and Vice President Biden.
“Clinton was one of the most liberal members during her time in the Senate. According to an analysis of roll call votes by Voteview, Clinton’s record was more liberal than 70 percent of Democrats in her final term in the Senate. She was more liberal than 85 percent of all members. Her 2008 rival in the Democratic presidential primary, Barack Obama, was nearby with a record more liberal than 82 percent of all members — he was not more liberal than Clinton.
Clinton also has a history of very liberal public statements. Clinton rates as a “hard core liberal” per the OnTheIssues.org scale. She is as liberal as Elizabeth Warren and barely more moderate than Bernie Sanders. And while Obama is also a “hard core liberal,” Clinton again was rated as more liberal than Obama.”
– Nate Silver, 538 blog
Vox’s Matthew Yglesias explains that Hillary Clinton’s voting record in the Senate was more liberal than President Obama’s, and that in terms of economics “Clinton’s economic agenda tacks well to the left of her husband’s and of Barack Obama’s: She “is less inclined to favor a market-oriented approach than a left-wing approach, a real change from the past quarter century of Democratic Party economic policymaking.”
The Daily Kos, citing a statistical program used to compare political ideologies, also found:
“Hillary Clinton was the 11th most liberal member of the Senate in each of the 107th, 108th,109th, and 110th Congresses. That places her slightly to the left of Pat Leahy (-0.386), Barbara Mikulski (-0.385) and Dick Durbin (-0.385); clearly to the left of Joe Biden (-0.331) and Harry Reid (-0.289)”
While Hillary’s opposition points to her votes authorizing the use of force in Iraq and the ‘Patriot’ Act, often pointing to these votes as ‘disqualifying,’ as a Senator, Mr. Biden voted for both as well.
So as democrats decide who they want to support and why, let’s ensure that every candidate is measured fairly and by facts… instead of unfounded allegations of conservatism, corporatism, and cronyism that have no basis in fact.