Paul Ryan would be the most conservative House speaker since at least the 1940s
Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), the reluctant frontrunner in the House speaker race, would be the most conservative speaker in decades if elected, National Journal reports. Using DW-NOMINATE, a scale that compares political ideologies throughout history, Ryan earned himself a 0.58 where 1 is the most conservative and -1 the most liberal. Based on House and Senate roll call votes, DW-NOMINATE puts former contender Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and challenger Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Fla.) both at 0.48; outgoing Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) ranked the most conservative in recent history with 0.53, still five points short of Ryan.
While Ryan's high score further highlights the Republican Party's much-talked-about rightward swing, the last Democratic speaker, Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), also ranked as the most liberal of at least nine of the speakers who came before her, with -0.50 on the DW-NOMINATE scale.
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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