Kissell and McHenry claim bragging rights

It didn’t take long for some in our Congressional delegation – on different ends of the political spectrum, we might add – to get out the word about their rankings in, according to the Democrat, “one of the most respected nonpartisan publications in Washington.”

That Democrat is 8th district House member Larry Kissell who says the National Journal Magazine ranked him one of the most centrist members of Congress. “Kissell was the fourth closest to the ideological center as rated by the National Journal’s 2009 Vote Rating,” says Kissell’s press release Friday.

“I work hard to do what I think is right and put politics aside and I’m proud my voting record reflects that. I believe we can have differences and still meet in the middle,” Kissell said. “My top priority remains what is best for the people of the Eighth District. I will continue to cast my vote for what is best for them.”

His N.C. colleague, GOP representative Patrick McHenry, took a bow for being named the most conservative member of the N.C. congressional delegation, and for being ranked the 17th most conservative member of the U.S. House of Representatives.

“I’ve always voted my conscience and worked hard to best represent the interests of my district. In town hall after town hall, the people of Western North Carolina repeatedly told me that they were tired of the runaway spending in Washington, tired of the government takeovers of private industry, and did not want to see the health care system become the next target for a power grab by liberal Democrats,” McHenry said in his press release.

McHenry continued by saying “in order to turn our economy around we need to take an honest look at drastically lowering our deficit through entitlement reform, lowering taxes so that businesses can create jobs, and adopting an energy policy that fully utilizes the vast natural resources of our country.”

Since taking office in 2005, Congressman McHenry has consistently been ranked as one of the top conservative leaders of the U.S. House.