Why is Barack Obama listed as the "most Liberal Senator" and what's it worth?

My question is this,  We hear that Obama is the most liberal senator.  So was John Kerry in 2004.  Doesn’t that seem coincidental?  Is Barack really the “most liberal” just like Kerry?  What is the source of this “fact”?

To answer the second question first, I learned this.  It came from a rating done by the National Journal, some sort of magazine, I take it. I believe their result was chosen simply because it rated Obama as the MOST LIBERAL Senator. So, the National Journal rates Obama as the MOST LIBERAL SENATOR OF 2007, more liberal than Ted Kennedy, more liberal than John Kerry.  And, you the television viewer, must accept this as FACT.  Is it?

Since I started doing Kos, I have found that its value to me is that it provides me with real answers to issue-related questions as opposed to “watered down” answers sometimes provided by the MSM, or “distorted” answers (same source).  Kos can point the direction for these answers or presents them directly.  Often, I have learned things that aren’t even reported anywhere like the truth behind the Canadian Government/NAFTA gaffe (thanks so much for that).  So, my goal is that when I have time, I want to attempt to provide something new to other Kos readers. Here is my first attempt.

Is Barack Obama the most liberal Senator and, if so, why?  First, there are other liberal/conservative rating systems, including the American Conservative Union who rated Obama as less liberal than a total of 31 Senators.  

For the ACU, Obama came out as an 8 (with 100 being the most conservative possible).  These Senators got a zero:  Akaka (HI), Biden (DE), Brown (OH), Cardin (MD), Clinton (NY), Dodd (CT), Durbin (IL), Feinstein (CA), Inouye (HI), Johnson (IL), Kennedy (MA), Kohl (WI), Lautenberg (NJ), Leahy (VT), Menendez (D), Mikulski (MD), Murray (WA), Reed (RI), Reid (NY), Schumer (NY), Whitehouse (RI).  With a 4 on the ACU scale were:  Sanders (VT), Boxer (CA), Kerry (MA), Levin (MI), Bingaman (NM), Bill Nelson (FL), Klobuchar (MN), Wydan (OR), Cantwell (WA), Feingold (WI).  Of note, Lieberman (CT) scored an 8, and McCain (AZ) an 80.

I personally like the ACU website because they have links to other rating systems like the NRA, right-to-life groups, and (mostly) tax-relief groups.  They have a picture of Ronald Reagan on their homepage and their icon is a little American Flag.

Back to the National Journal.

How did the National Journal come up with Obama as number one and what does it mean?  In other words, what votes give him this lofty position?  Well, I couldn’t find the comparison of all the Senate, because I have work to do later, but I found a nifty comparison of Hillary vs. Barack.  Let Hillary be the example for no reason other than this data is sufficient to show exactly what these ratings are worth.

The 2007 Senate ratings for the National Journal had 36 Economic Issue votes, 34 Social Issue votes, and 29 Foreign Policy Issue votes.  In most cases, both Hillary and Barack voted with the position that the Journal deemed “liberal”.  I saw 17 places where Hillary did not vote and 33 places for Barack.

Here are the informative votes: First, Bill 18/S1.

Bill 18/S1.  Establish a Senate Office of Public Integrity to handle ethics complaints against senators. Clinton voted No with the conservative choice (No), Obama voted Yes.  The vote was 27 Yes; 71 No.

Also voting Yes (with Obama) were the following Democrats:  Bayh (IN), Biden (DE), Bingaman (NM), Cantwell (WA), Carper (DE), Casey (PA), Feingold (WI), Kerry (MA), Klobuchar (MN), Kohl (WI), Landrieu (LA), Lautenberg (NJ), Levin (MI), McCaskill (MO), Menendez (NJ), Nelson (FL), Reed (RI), Stabenow (MI), Whitehouse (RI), and Wyden (OR).

And, among Republicans or Ind voting with Obama: Snowe (ME), Graham (SC), Grassley (IA), Lieberman (I-CT), McCain (AZ), and Collins (ME).

Then, there is Bill 189/S1348.  

Bill 189/S1348 allow certain immigrants to stay in the United States while renewing their visas. June 6. Clinton voted No with the conservative choice No, Obama voted Yes.  The vote was 41 Yes; 58 No.  I don’t know more than you do about this bill but my daughter’s college roommate (a piano major at Cincinnati), had to go back to Korea, missing the winter quarter at school to renew her visa.  She is not a threat to our security.

Democrats voting with Obama:  Akaka (HI), Baucus (MT), Bayh (IN), Biden (DE), Bingaman (NM), Boxer (CA), Brown (OH), Cantwell (WA), Cardin (MD), Carper (DE), Casey (PA), Conrad (ND), Dodd (CT), Durbin (IL), Feingold (WI), Harkin (IA), Inouye (HI), Kerry (MA), Kohl (WI), Landrieu (LA), Lautenberg (NJ), Leahy (VT), Lincoln (AR), Menendez (NJ), Mikulski (MD), Murray (WA), Nelson (FL), Pryor (AR), Reed (RI), Reid (NV), Schumer (NY), Tester (MT), Whitehouse (RI), and Wyden (OR)

Republicans or Ind voting with Obama: Sanders (I-VT), Coburn (OK), Hagel (NE), Hutchison (TX), Lieberman (CT), and Shelby (AL).

Finally, there were less informative votes.  Bill 77/SConRes20, in which Clinton and Obama both voted Yes, with the "liberal" position.  This Bill states: Express the sense of Congress that funds for U.S. troops in the field should not be cut off. March 15. (The vote was 82 Yes, 16 No). Lastly, there were two votes where Clinton voted with the “liberals” and Obama didn’t vote. These were:  349/HR1585.  Express the sense of the Senate that the Iranian revolutionary guard should be designated a terrorist organization. (76 Yes, 22 No).  Also, Bill 261/HR2669 waives a procedural objection to providing legal immunity to people who report suspicious activities. (57 Yes, 39 No).

So, all told, when only comparing Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, the National Journal rates them as Hillary: 82.8 (she ranked 16th) and Barack:  95.5.  

So, although I am comparing only two Senators, the result is that Barack Obama is the Senate’s most liberal Senator because he voted to establish a Senate office of public integrity and to allow certain immigrants to renew their visas while in the US.  AND, ON ONE OF THESE BILLS, MCCAIN VOTED THE SAME WAY!!!!!!

I rest my case that Obama's "most liberal status" is a crock and that the average person would probably side with him on the two most informative cases.  

By the way, I notice that on these votes, Hillary voted with the conservatives when that view was the majority and with the liberals when that view was the majority.  In other words, she did not go with the minority.  Looks like another alliedoc diary some day.