Check the Record Here

Wondering how your Members of Congress have voted on key rural economic issues? Use these websites to check on the following issues and more:

Veterans' Report Card, sponsored by the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. Pay special attention to the votes for the New GI Bill, because it is just a bit tricky to tell whether your Representative voted for it. The Bill itself is quite simple, authorizing our Afghan and Iraq war veterans as eligible to receive the same kind of educational benefits our WWII veterans. There are three votes, and to see which members tried to stop the bill, look down the column to the first two votes.

Project Vote Smart, like IAVA, is a non-partisan organizationdedicated to accurate information about how elected officials in Congress vote. We recomment you check the following votes:

• Agriculture -- Farm Bill. Look closely -- there are four votes and if your concern is that the bill President Bush vetoed is too expensive, start your analysis at 7-27-2007 because this vote shows the less expensive original Farm Bill.
• Health -- Farm Bill; Medicare; Medicaid; State Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization.
• Women's issues -- Unequal Pay Bill.
• Seniors -- Medicare; Medicaid; GI Bill Expansion and Other Domestic Provisions
• Energy -- Renewable Energy; Commodity Markets Speculation.

Obama? McCain? check the record on their rural policy proposals below. Note that McCain, like President Bush opposed the Farm Bill, and Obama supported it. Their policy proposals can be found below on their campaign websites.

Three key differences in their policy proposals are:

1. Ethanol and Energy Renewable Research -- McCain opposes; Obama supports.
2. Farm Bill in general -- McCain opposes; Obama supports.
3. Health Care -- McCain opposes SCHIP and Obama supports

McCain: RURAL

Obama: RURAL

You can also continue scrolling down this page for more information on various substantive "bread & butter" issues that affect rural families.