Sen. McCain Receives "Perfect" Grade From Right-Wing Club For Growth

Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) recent pandering to the far right has not gone unnoticed.  In an effort to survive a tough primary challenge from a conservative radio host, McCain has renounced the "maverick" label and changed positions on a number of issues -- most notably, immigration reform.  McCain's latest ad, titled "Complete the Danged Fence," has been widely mocked, even among his supporters. 

The truth, however, is that McCain started lurching to the right as soon as President Obama moved into the White House.  From vocally opposing the Recovery Act, to flip-flopping on clean energy reform, to spreading health care lies, McCain walked in lockstep with the conservative base throughout 2009. 

Today, the right-wing Club For Growth rewarded McCain's loyalty:

More than a dozen GOP incumbents voted exactly as the Club for Growth wanted them to, according to the conservative group's annual scorecard released today.

All told, 9 House members, including Reps. Paul Broun (R-GA), John Linder (R-GA), Jeff Flake (R-AZ), Tom Price (R-GA), Doug Lamborn (R-CO), Virginia Foxx (R-NC), Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), Tom McClintock (R-CA) and John Shadegg (R-AZ) won 100% ratings from the conservative pro-business organization, ratings based on votes taken during '09.

Sens. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), John McCain (R-AZ), Saxby Chambliss (R-GA), Tom Coburn (R-OK), Jim Inhofe (R-OK) and Jim DeMint (R-SC) voted perfectly with the Club in the upper chamber.

As Reid Wilson notes, "McCain's move to the top of the Club's rankings is a dramatic departure from previous years. In '06, the last time McCain took enough Club-scored votes to be ranked, he pulled just a 76% score."

McCain's actual independence was always exaggerated by the media, but earning a spot alongside the likes of DeMint and Coburn shows just how far he's come.