This morning, the presidential nominating effort called Americans Elect introduced a new web feature called “Candidates,” in which it rates a select group of American politicians on the basis of their policy agreement with two documents:

1. Majority or plurality answers to a Ipsos Public Affairs Poll apparently commissioned by Americans Elect corporate staff, the text of which has not been released to the public.

2. A set of “core questions” drawn up and approved by Americans Elect corporate executives in September of 2011.

The choice of questions in the mystery Ipsos poll and the choice of “core questions” by Americans Elect executives create the opportunity for biased results in the Americans Elect ratings of possible presidential contenders. Which have a better “National Match” will depend on the way questions are asked and the set of questions that are included and excluded.

Because the Ipsos poll text has not been released by Americans Elect, it is not possible to directly assess the “National Match” for bias. But indirectly, it is possible to determine how centrist or extremist the “National Matches” are if they are current members of Congress, thanks to the rating system for the House and Senate that we’ve developed for the 112th Congress.

The Ten Top-Rated “National Match” Politicians according to Americans Elect, with Congressional Status and Record
1. Republican Buddy Roemer. Not a current member of Congress.

2. Republican Congressman Dennis Ross. % of Possible Liberal Actions Taken: 3%. % of Possible Conservative Actions Taken: 81%.

3. Republican Congressman Trey Gowdy. % of Possible Liberal Actions Taken: 3%. % of Possible Conservative Actions Taken: 67%.

4. Republican Congressman Allen West. % of Possible Liberal Actions Taken: 6%. % of Possible Conservative Actions Taken: 75%.

5. Republican Congressman Ron Paul. % of Possible Liberal Actions Taken: 33%. % of Possible Conservative Actions Taken: 25%.

6. Republican Congressman Steve Stivers. % of Possible Liberal Actions Taken: 12%. % of Possible Conservative Actions Taken: 53%.

7. Republican Congressman Mike Pompeo. % of Possible Liberal Actions Taken: 3%. % of Possible Conservative Actions Taken: 75%.

8. Republican Congresswoman Ann Marie Buerkle. % of Possible Liberal Actions Taken: 6%. % of Possible Conservative Actions Taken: 67%.

9. Democratic Congressman John Carney. % of Possible Liberal Actions Taken: 55%. % of Possible Conservative Actions Taken: 17%.

10. Democratic Senator Al Franken. % of Possible Liberal Actions Taken: 64%. % of Possible Liberal Actions Taken: 10%.

Conclusion
With the notable exceptions of Ron Paul, the congressional politicians receiving the highest ratings from Americans Elect in its “National Match” process are not centrists or moderates. They are disproportionately members of the Republican Party and disproportionately conservative; the two Democrats are the lowest-ranked of the Top Ten. Again with the exception of Ron Paul, the Americans Elect Top Ten are unusually disinclined to reach across the aisle and work with liberal ideas. They display a strong tendency to consistently support conservative ideas. The pattern in these ratings does not match Americans Elect’s rhetorical emphasis on bipartisanship.

P.S. In a possibly unrelated matter, only one of the Americans Elect Top Ten is a woman. Only one of the Americans Elect Top Ten is not white.