Speaking of the WCU...

...they now have their scores for the 2005 session posted. The Washington Conservative Union is an authoritarian conservative organization allied with the national American Conservative Union. They seek to:

-Promote strong families (choke me, please)
-Promote responsible, taxpayer-friendly fiscal policies (corrected punctuation error from site)
-Maintain a responsible criminal justice system
-Foster a sound educational system for youth
-Assure limited government/deregulation/privatization
-Recognize constitutional protections (as long as they suit this agenda, but I digress)

I like to watch this list to keep an eye on which Republicans in the legislature are fair-minded. Your run-of-the-mill rural right-wingers will generally score above 90 and the vast majority of Democrats score below 20, save for a handful of DINOs like Sens. Tim Sheldon and Jim Hargrove. Any score in the middle is generally favourable to moderates and libertarians, since liberal Republicans tend to jump on social and not fiscal issues. Here's the breakdown for both legislative bodies:

Senate
Highest GOP: Five tied with 100, including Linda Evans Parlette [R-Wenatchee] and Stephen Johnson [R-Kent]

Lowest GOP:
1. Dave Schmidt [R-Bothell] 73
2. Bob Oke [R-Port Orchard] 78
Five tied at 80, including Bill Finkbeiner [R-Kirkland] and Cheryl Pflug [R-Maple Valley]

Highest Democrats:
1. Tim Sheldon [D-Potlatch] 87 (please switch already)
2. Jim Hargrove [D-Hoquiam] 33
3. Mary Margaret Haugen [D-Camano Island] 13
4. Rosa Franklin [D-Tacoma] 13

House
Highest GOP: Six tied with 100, including Jim Buck [R-Port Angeles] and my former legislator, Larry Crouse [R-Spokane]

Lowest GOP (aka heroes):
1. Fred Jarrett [R-Mercer Island] 29
2. Shirley Hankins [R-Richland] 40
3. Rodney Tom [R-Bellevue] 42
4. Tom Campbell [R-Roy] 47
5. Larry Haler [R-Richland] 53 (how the Tri-Cities is willing to elect reasonable representatives, I have no clue)
Honourable mentions to freshman Maureen Walsh [R-Walla Walla] and Skip Priest [R-Federal Way], who each scored a reasonable 60

Highest Democrats:
1. Mark Miloscia [D-Federal Way] 27
2. Deb Wallace [D-Vancouver] 27
Four tied with 20, including Kelli Linville [D-Bellingham] and Pat Sullivan [D-Covington]

Lowest Democrats:
32 (if I counted correctly) tied at zero, including nearly every Seattle-area member