Vote Smart provides easy access to congressional and state voting records and maintains a collection of key votes grouped by issue. Vote Smart uses the following criteria to select key votes:
Vote Smart provides a summary of the version of the bill text associated with each selected key vote. Our summaries are written by Vote Smart's staff and interns, who adhere to our strict policies and procedures in order to guarantee absolute impartiality and accuracy. They do not necessarily reflect the content of the final version of the bill, but rather the version voted on in that stage. While many procedural votes take place before a full chamber vote, our voting stages reflect the final reading of each chamber vote. Each key vote selection is reviewed by the project's community of advisors, who are political scientists and journalists from all fifty states.
For more information about the legislative process, see here.
Date | State | Bill No. | Title | Outcome |
---|---|---|---|---|
Sept. 17, 2008 | National | S 3001 | Defense Authorizations Bill | Bill Passed - Senate (88 - 8) |
July 10, 2008 | National | PN 1641 | Nomination of General Petraeus as Military Leader of the Middle East | Nomination Confirmed - Senate (95 - 2) |
June 26, 2008 | National | HR 2642 | Iraq and Afghanistan War Funding, Unemployment Benefits Extension, and GI Bill | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (92 - 6) |
May 22, 2008 | National | S Amdt 4818 | Funding for Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan | Amendment Adopted - Senate (70 - 26) |
May 22, 2008 | National | S Amdt 4817 | Iraq Provisions Including a Troop Withdrawal | Amendment Rejected - Senate (34 - 63) |
Feb. 13, 2008 | National | HR 2082 | Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (51 - 45) |
Jan. 22, 2008 | National | HR 4986 | Defense Authorizations Bill | Bill Passed - Senate (91 - 3) |
Date | No. | Title | Outcome |
---|---|---|---|
9/17 | S 3001 | Defense Authorizations Bill | Bill Passed - Senate (88 - 8) |
7/10 | PN 1641 | Nomination of General Petraeus as Military Leader of the Middle East | Nomination Confirmed - Senate (95 - 2) |
6/26 | HR 2642 | Iraq and Afghanistan War Funding, Unemployment Benefits Extension, and GI Bill | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (92 - 6) |
5/22 | S Amdt 4818 | Funding for Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan | Amendment Adopted - Senate (70 - 26) |
5/22 | S Amdt 4817 | Iraq Provisions Including a Troop Withdrawal | Amendment Rejected - Senate (34 - 63) |
2/13 | HR 2082 | Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (51 - 45) |
1/22 | HR 4986 | Defense Authorizations Bill | Bill Passed - Senate (91 - 3) |