Mercer Island, WA – Congressman Dave Reichert (WA-08) is the only centrist representative of the Washington State delegation, according to a study of votes released by Congressional Quarterly this morning. The data echoes the assessment by the independent publication National Journal, who named Reichert the only centrist member of Washington State’s delegation in 2006, and again in March 2007.

The table below shows how frequently House lawmakers have supported their party's position so far this year. The 2007 support scores reflect the percentage of the time that a lawmaker voted with his or her party's majority on roll-call votes that pitted a majority of Democrats against a majority of Republicans. As of Aug. 4, the beginning of Congress' summer district work period, the two parties had opposed each other on 526 of 839 House roll-call votes.

The table below shows how frequently House lawmakers have supported President Bush during roll-call votes so far this year. The 2007 support scores reflect the percentage of the time that a lawmaker's vote on the floor matched a clear presidential position. It is worth noting that as of Aug. 4, the beginning of Congress' summer district work period, the president had taken a position on only 76 of 839 House roll-call votes, according to the judgment of the editors of Congressional Quarterly.

For more information, visit http://www.cqpolitics.com.

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Reichert the Only Centrist Member of Congress in Washington State