Pirate's Cove

Of course, the Washington Post terms it "Republicans run from partisan voting"

Fresh off winning election to the Senate in the fall of 2002, Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) entered the chamber as a staunch conservative, voting with a majority of his GOP colleagues nearly 94 percent of the time in the 108th Congress.

In 2005 and 2006, Coleman sided with a majority of Republicans on less than 85 percent of the votes he cast in the 109th Congress. Now, facing re-election in 2008 in a state that’s grown increasingly hostile to Republicans, Coleman is voting with his GOP colleagues just 79 percent of the time so far this year.

Coleman’s not alone. Across the board, Republicans have shed their partisan natures while Democrats have grown more sure ideologically in the first five months of the 110th Congress. The average GOP senator voted with a majority of Republicans on nearly 92 percent of roll calls in the 108th — while Democrats stood at less than 85 percent. And so far this year the average Senate Republican has voted with his or her majority just 83 percent of the time. (Democrats are now voting together 90 percent of the time.) (bold mine)

These are the findings in a new database feature created by washingtonpost.com’s Derek Willis and Adrian Holovaty, who have built an online analysis of how often members of Congress vote with a majority of their colleagues. This is about as fair a guidepost as there is for measuring the partisan nature of a member of Congress. [It will not surprise many Republicans to learn that the most partisan senator so far this year is Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), voting almost 99 percent of the time with the Democratic majority.]

Got that? Republicans are being less partisan, but Dems have grown more sure ideologically.

Trackposted to Blog @ MoreWhat.com, Perri Nelson’s Website, 4 Time Dad?, The Random Yak, DeMediacratic Nation, Maggie’s Notebook, Adam’s Blog, The Pet Haven Blog, Leaning Straight Up, Cao’s Blog, The Amboy Times, The Bullwinkle Blog, MY Vast Right Wing Conspiracy, , Jo’s Cafe, Pursuing Holiness, Rightlinx, third world county, Allie Is Wired, Woman Honor Thyself, The Crazy Rants of Samantha Burns, The Uncooperative Blogger, stikNstein… has no mercy, The World According to Carl, The Right Nation, Nuke’s news and views, Blue Star Chronicles, Dumb Ox Daily News, The Yankee Sailor, and Gone Hollywood, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.