Former Senator Unveils Bipartisan Measure of Congress
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"Former Senator Richard G. Lugar of Indiana was known as a centrist Republican on Capitol Hill, and it probably cost him in 2012 when he was knocked out of a primary by a Tea Party challenger who ultimately lost the general election.
Now the Lugar Center he leads has teamed up with the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University to develop a Bipartisan Index to measure members of Congress. The new ranking, being released for the first time on Tuesday, rates lawmakers by how their legislation does in attracting co-sponsors from the other party as well as how often they sponsor legislation proposed by members across the aisle.
No real surprise at the top of the Senate list: Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, and Senator Joe Manchin III, Democrat of West Virginia, both of whom are known for working with the other party. In the House, the two top scorers were Representative Chris Gibson and Representative Peter T. King, both Republicans of New York.
Research conducted in compiling the index also found that the 112th and 113th Congresses were the most partisan ever — another result that won’t surprise anyone who has been paying attention the previous four years."
