Rumors abound that U.S. Representative Carolyn Maloney is about to announce a campaign to run against Kirsten Gillibrand, the inexperienced politician appointed to New York’s U.S. Senate seat earlier this year. So, how do Maloney and Gillibrand compare?

According to our legislative scorecard for the U.S. House of Representatives, Maloney is clearly among the more progressive members of the House of Representatives, in the third tier near the top. Her net score of 61 out of 100 possible points places her high above Gillibrand’s short record in the House. Gillibrand’s record in the Senate is no better. Gillibrand has taken little meaningful legislative action, and has earned a net score on our Senate legislative scorecard of just 8 points out of a possible 100.

Gillibrand has voted to prevent the closure of George W. Bush’s shameful and unconstitutional prison at Guantanamo Bay. Gillibrand also gave her support to Torture Amendment 1157, which gives special permission to the Secretary of Defense to conceal photographic evidence of torture in American military prisons – including evidence of torture that takes place in the future.

There are Republicans in the Senate with more progressive legislative records than Kirsten Gillibrand. She ranks even below Joseph Lieberman on the progressive scale. Carolyn Maloney has made some serious legislative errors in the past, such as her vote in 2002 in favor of rushing into war in Iraq, but with her superior experience and a record of votes that is more in accordance with the values of New York State voters, she would be a much better choice in the 2010 election than Gillibrand.