If you’d like to know who the greenest politicians in Congress are in advance of the elections, check out this list from The Daily Beast.
To come up with the list, they started with the League of Conservation Voters National Environmental Scorecard, which scores legislator voting records, zeroing in on the nearly 100 people who scored 97 out of 100 or better.
They then researched donations from the oil, gas, and mining industries, and as well as from the cleantech industry and environmental nonprofits. They calculated the donations as a percentage of each politician’s total fundraising over the most recent term, with data from the Center for Responsive Politics and Maplight. And they added bonus points for politicians who are members of environmental and cleantech caucuses.
The League of Conservation Voters is targeting the five worst politicians, the "Flat Earth Five," to be booted out of office, those with "extreme, anti-science views on climate change" and who have voted against clean energy, and protecting clean air and water in favor of polluters. They all have lifetime scores of under 10% on their National Environment Scorecard.
The worst are all in the House: Dan Benishek (R-Michigan); Ann Marie Buerkle (R-New York), Dan Lungren (R-California), Francisco Canseco (R-Texas), and Joe Walsh (R-Illinois).
Sierra Club has released a Clean Water Voting Record for the House in honor of the 40th Anniversary of the Clean Water Act.
Here are Daily Beast’s TOP picks for the House of Representatives:
Raul Grijalva (D-Arizona)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $1,003,489
Oil, Gas, Mining donations: $0
Environmental policy donations: $25,099
Renewable Energy donations: $500
Member of the House Sustainable Energy & Environment Coalition; House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses; Children’s Environmental Health Caucus
Barbara Lee (D-California)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $972,741
Oil, Gas, Mining donations: $0
Environmental policy donations: $3,000
Renewable energy donations: $0
Member of the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition; House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses; House Oceans Caucus; Congressional International Conservation Caucus; Children’s Environmental Health Caucus
Lynn Woolsey (D-California)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $265,499
Oil, Gas, Mining donations: $0
Environmental policy donations: $2,250
Renewable energy donations: $0
Member of House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition; House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses; House Oceans Caucus
Sam Farr (D-California)
LCV Score: 97
Total funds raised: $689,236
Oil, Gas, Mining donations: $0
Environmental policy donations: $17,225
Renewable energy donations: $0
Member of House Sustainable Energy & Environment Coalition; House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses; House Oceans Caucus; Congressional International Conservation Caucus
Donna Edwards (D-Maryland)
LCV Score: 97
Total funds raised: $696,107
Mining, Oil and Gas donations: $0
Environmental policy donations: $13,200
Renewable energy donations: $0
Member of House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition
Rush Holt (D-New Jersey)
LCV Score: 100
Total donations: $2,402,876
Mining, Oil and Gas donations: $0
Environmental policy donations: $37,012
Renewable energy donations: $1,000
Member of House Sustainable Energy & Environment Coalition; House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses; Congressional International Conservation Caucus; Children’s Environmental Health Caucus
Tim Bishop (D-New York)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $2,639,278
Mining donations: $0
Oil and gas donations: $3,500
Environmental policy donations: $19,972
Renewable energy donations: $5,000
Member of House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses; House Oceans Caucus
Gerry Connolly (D-Virginia)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $2,009,221
Mining, Oil and Gas donations: $0
Environmental policy donations: $14,191
Renewable energy donations: $0
Member of House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition
Jim Moran (D-Virginia)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $1,204,228
Oil, Gas, Mining donations: $0
Environmental policy donations: $0
Renewable energy donations: $3,500
Member of the House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses; Congressional International Conservation Caucus; Children’s Environmental Health Caucus
Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin)
LCV Score: 97
Total funds raised: $3,922,942
Mining donations: $0
Oil and gas donations: $700
Environmental policy donations: $72,063
Renewable energy donations: $5,000
Member of House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses; Congressional International Conservation Caucus; Children’s Environmental Health Caucus
Here are Daily Beast’s TOP picks for the Senate:
Dianne Feinstein (D-California)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $6,713,205
Mining donations: $0
Oil and gas donations: $2,500
Environmental policy donations: $14,550
Renewable energy donations: $25,000
Barbara Boxer (D-California)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $17,269,674
Mining donations: $5,050
Oil and gas donations: $1,500
Environmental policy donations: $247,492
Renewable energy donations: $48,099
Member of Senate Oceans Caucus
Mark Udall (D-Colorado)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $11,374,594
Mining donations: $13,800
Oil and gas donations: $27,760
Environmental policy donations: $300,697
Renewable energy donations: $41,925
Member of House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses; Congressional International Conservation Caucus
Michael Bennet (D-Colorado)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $11,683,641
Mining donations: $4,800
Oil and gas donations: $24,550
Environmental policy donations: $160,161
Renewable energy donations: $21,700
Member of Congressional International Conservation Caucus
Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $6,616,122
Mining donations: $0
Oil and gas donations: $6,500
Environmental policy donations: $67,306
Renewable energy donations: $500
Member of Senate Oceans Caucus
Barbara Mikulski, (D-Maryland)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $4,406,285
Oil, Gas, Mining donations: $0
Environmental policy donations: $14,600
Renewable Energy donations: $0
John Kerry (D-Massachusetts)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $5,729,465
Mining donations: $0
Oil and gas donations: $500
Environmental policy donations: $18,920
Renewable energy donations: $5,400
Member of House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses; Senate Oceans Caucus; Congressional International Conservation
Harry Reid (D-Nevada)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $22,478,171
Mining donations: $15,650
Oil and gas donations: $14,400
Environmental policy donations: $124,309
Renewable energy donations: $103,492
Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $6,069,246
Mining donations: $250
Oil and gas donations: $1,000
Environmental policy donations: $87,445
Renewable energy donations: $10,650
Member of House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses
Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island)
LCV Score: 100
Total funds raised: $6,982,368
Mining donations: $0
Oil and gas donations: $3,250
Environmental policy donations: $83,860
Renewable energy donations: $1,000
Member of House and Senate Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses; Senate Oceans Caucus; Congressional International Conservation
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