Americans for the Arts Report Card: Republicans, Too Busy Lying, Flunk

I received this press release today. Not surprisingly, Republicans are anti-arts imbeciles who'll bankrupt the country before celebrating its artists.

AMERICANS FOR THE ARTS ACTION FUND PAC ISSUES CONGRESSIONAL REPORT CARD ON THE ARTS

Maine Tops List as Best State Delegation, Alaska and Wyoming at the Bottom

Arts Advocates Have a Chance to Vote smART on November 4

The Americans for the Arts Action Fund PAC issues its Congressional Arts Report Card, covering the 110th Congress (2007-2009). The entire Report Card containing letter grades and numerical scores of every Member of Congress based on his or her voting record on arts issues can be found online at www.artsactionfund.org/stay_informed/special_reports/.

The 2008 Congressional Arts Report Card reveals that 181 members (43%) of Congress received a grade of A or higher. When the grades of the Members of each state delegation are averaged on a state-by-state basis, the highest scoring state delegation is Maine, with a perfect score of 100. Alaska and Wyoming are the lowest scoring state delegations with a score of 20 points each.

Additionally, the Arts Report Card shows that support for the arts is bipartisan and growing, as evidenced in the nearly 24% increase in membership of the Congressional Arts Caucus since 2000. Also, 21 representatives improved their Report Card scores by one-letter grade or more from their 2006 Report Card grade.

The 110th Congress is decidedly pro-arts. Congress voted to increase funding for the National Endowment for the Arts from $124.4 million to $144.7 million. This $20 million increase by Congress lays the foundation for a full restoration of NEA funding to its 1992 level—$176 million. Additionally, the number of co-sponsors on the House’s Artists Deduction Bill (H.R. 1524) has increased from 71 to 102.

“As the arts and arts education increasingly established a foothold during this year’s presidential campaign trail, the Report Card will serve as a compelling guide for the public to make overall arts-informed decisions at the ballot box on Election Day,” said Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of the Americans for the Arts Action Fund. “Although the Report Card shows that Congress is progressively acknowledging the importance of the arts and arts education, further support is needed in arts funding.”

The Report Card assigns each Member of Congress a letter grade and numerical score based on his or her voting record on specific arts and arts education policy issues. Four separate congressional actions are covered, and each is weighted based on its importance to the arts -- with the greatest weight given to four votes on funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). A perfect score equals 100 points, and the points are correlated to a letter grade of A+ through F. The Report Card also includes a detailed arts voting record for each Member.

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