Veterans' group ratings on Ackerman, McCarthy slip

A Washington, D.C.-based organization that advocates for Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans has downgraded the ratings of two of Long Island's five members of Congress.

Reps. Gary Ackerman and Carolyn McCarthy saw their ratings in the 2010 Congressional Report Card, issued by Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, slip from two years ago. Ackerman (D-Roslyn Heights) got a B rating, down from an A-minus, and McCarthy (D-Mineola), who last time got an A-plus, drew a C.

Long Island's three other congressmen, Steve Israel (D-Dix Hills), Tim Bishop (D-Southampton) and Peter King (R-Seaford), all got A grades from the organization, which rated House members based on their positions on 18 pieces of legislation deemed key to Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, including bills relating to jobs, disability aid and education grants.

Both Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), who received an A-plus two years ago, and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat who was a House member two years ago, received A grades in the 2010 report, which evaluated their positions on 12 Senate bills.

Evaluators from the veterans group gave members of Congress one point for either voting for a favored piece of legislation, or for co-sponsoring favored pending bills.

House members with 18 points received an A-plus. Senators, who faced fewer pieces of legislation, reached an A-plus with 13 points.

Tom Tarantino, the group's chief legislative associate, said Long Island's delegation did "fairly well" compared with the rest of Congress. He said in some cases, including that of McCarthy, delegation members lost points because they were absent for key votes.

Overall, the report gave Congress poor marks, saying it was mostly ineffective because of "partisan politics and an early focus on the upcoming elections."