When he heads into the officially sanctioned vice-presidential debate on Tuesday, Republican nominee Gov. Mike Pence walks into a very bright spotlight with much media coverage. He also will have the blessings of the American Conservative Union.
“Mike Pence is the most conservative vice presidential nominee the country has seen in 50 years,” the organization said after reviewing Mr. Pence’s previous legislative and voting records.
He is in “99 percent alignment” with th ACU’s tenets.
The conservative group annually reviews the records of federal and state elected officials on a scale of zero to 99 points, assigning them an “ACU rating” according to their voting records and support for conservative issues.
“The single most liberal vice-presidential nominee in our lifetime is Tim Kaine, the only nominee with a perfect 0 percent lifetime rating,” the organization said, adding that the rating “puts him to the left” of then Sen. Barack Obama who had a 10 percent rating, Sen. Hillary Clinton (8 percent) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (6 percent).
Among former vice-presidential nominees in past years, Dick Cheney is in second place behind Mr. Pence with an ACU rating of 90.8 percent.
He is followed by Jack Kemp (88.8 percent), House Majority Leader Paul Ryan (88.9 percent), Bob Dole (82.4 percent), Dan Quayle (80.3 percent), Gerald Ford (64 percent), Lloyd Bentsen (40.5 percent), Joe Lieberman (15.1 percent) and Al Gore (14.6 percent).
At the bottom of the list: Hubert Humphrey (5 percent), Walter Mondale (3.7 percent) and Mr. Kaine, with 0 percent.
• Jennifer Harper can be reached at jharper@washingtontimes.com.
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