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Montana Conservatives, a group formed before the 2009 Legislative Session, is making good on its promise to grade lawmakers. The January report cards are in (.pdf) and, at least according to its President Rob Natelson, the results aren't pretty. In an e-mail, he said:

“Most Democrats did not cast a single index vote for smaller government – or even against bigger government. But Republicans did not show similar unity. While there are some Republicans who voted consistently for smaller government, others had records that looked more like Democrats. On average, Republicans were somewhat more liberal than conservative during this first month of the session, which is quite different from the party ‘brand.’”

Here's how Montana Conservatives grade:

Lawmakers are rated on a scale of 0 to 100, with 0 representing a perfect liberal voting record and 100 a perfect conservative voting record. By and large, a vote for larger government – more taxes, regulation or other government intrusion – is counted as “liberal,” while a vote in the other direction is counted as “conservative.” Ambiguous or arguable votes, including party-line votes, are not included in the survey.

Here's how your Flathead delegation scored, based on 15 votes. No one got higher than a C.

SENATE
Sen. Greg Barkus, R-Kalispell: 75%
Sen. Verdell Jackson, R-Kalispell: 50%
Sen. Bruce Tudvedt, R-Kalispell: 50%
Sen. Ryan Zinke, R-Whitefish: 25%

HOUSE
Rep. Bill Beck, R-Whitefish: 27%
Rep. Mark Blasdel, R-Somers: 55%
Rep. Dee Brown, R-Hungry Horse: 9%
Rep. Mike Jopek, D-Whitefish: 0%
Rep. Keith Regier, R-Kalispell: 73%
Rep. Scott Reichner, R-Bigfork: 27%
Rep. Jon Sonju,R-Kalispell : 64%
Rep. Cheryl Steenson, D-Kalispell: 0%
Rep. Janna Taylor, R-Polson: 45%

Quite a few Fs, and for Republicans no less.

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