The liberals' liberal

National Journal's annual ratings are out, and the most liberal member of the Senate is Edward M. Kennedy. That may come as no surprise, since the venerable Massachusetts Democrat is often called the chamber's ''liberal lion."

In fact, Kennedy is still outpaced by his junior colleague, Senator John F. Kerry, who ranked as the eighth most liberal senator in the magazine's survey of key congressional votes in 2005. Kerry has been ranked the Senate's top liberal four times, says Richard E. Cohen, National Journal writer and coauthor of the Almanac of American Politics.

Kennedy has held the top spot three times -- the last time in 1988. But both he and Kerry are far behind the late senator Paul D. Wellstone, whom National Journal named the top liberal a record seven times.

Lambasting Democratic candidates as ''liberal" is a tried-and-true Republican advertising tactic. But Kennedy, whose reelection campaign this year promises to be another yawner, isn't shying away from the label. Instead, spokeswoman Laura Capps took the news as an opportunity to let loose some campaign rhetoric: ''If being called a liberal means fighting to improve healthcare, creating an economy that works for every American, increasing college opportunity, and ensuring that Massachusetts continues to lead the nation on technology and medicine, then Senator Kennedy is proud of that label because being a senator is about how you improve people's lives, not what political category you fall into."

Kerry's office was less thrilled. ''Americans judge you by what you fight for, not the number a cubicle-dwelling pencil pusher assigns to your votes," said spokesman David Wade. ''These grades seem more arbitrary by the minute."

In case anyone underestimates the depth of Massachusetts' blue-stateness, it should be noted that the Bay State -- which has 10 US House members, all Democrats -- tied with Vermont for the most liberal House delegation. Their delegation consists of one socialist, Bernie Sanders.

The Massachusetts delegation's dean, Representative Edward J. Markey of Malden, and Representative John W. Olver of Amherst, a former chemistry professor and state lawmaker, had the highest rankings. Representative Stephen F. Lynch of South Boston, a former ironworker, had the state's most conservative legislative record.

Tolerance for tampering

Is the Republican phone-jamming scandal stemming from the 2002 race between Senator John E. Sununu and Democrat Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire becoming an expensive legal quagmire for the national GOP?

Federal Election Commission documents reveal that the Republican National Committee paid out nearly $1.8 million in December to the Washington law firm of Williams & Connolly, which represents James Tobin, the 2004 Bush-Cheney New England campaign chair who was convicted of telephone harassment charges for his alleged role in a scheme to jam Democratic get-out-the-vote phone lines. Tobin is due to be sentenced in May, when he will face up to five years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines.

The RNC's footing of his legal fees, now estimated at more than $2.3 million, has prompted Democratic critics to allege that Republicans are violating their own zero-tolerance policy for voter tampering.

No comment from RNC officials.

Unrequited endorsement

Representative Christopher H. Shays, a moderate Republican facing a tough challenge in his liberal-leaning Connecticut district this year, has endorsed Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, a Democrat, for reelection. ''I believe elected officials should be Americans first and Republicans or Democrats second. Joe took a lot of grief from his party when he told the truth as an American about what he saw in Iraq -- that we are making progress -- and it took courage.

''After bucking my leadership on more than one occasion, I had empathy for him. He put principles over partisanship, and he's earned my vote," Shays says.

Lieberman told reporters he appreciated the support from Shays -- whom he described as ''a good friend." But he won't return the favor: Lieberman is endorsing Shays's opponent, Democrat Diane Farrell.

Montana maverick

Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer's wife, Nancy, sat between Vice President Dick Cheney and Karl Rove during a gathering of the nation's governors, in town last week for their winter meeting. Schweitzer, the first Democrat to govern his Bush-supporting state in 16 years, says he wishes he could have traded places with his wife so he could offer some advice to Bush's top political adviser.

Bush, Schweitzer asserts, could leave a surprising, and lasting, legacy as the ''oil man" who kicked America's oil addiction with alternative fuels. ''The same way Nixon opened China," Schweitzer says.

A rancher who was elected governor in 2004, Schweitzer is considered a rising star among Democrats for his ability to play nice with Republicans -- and he isn't shy about offering his opinions. At a panel of big-name Democratic governors meeting at a liberal think tank Tuesday, he bounded into the room late, sporting black jeans and a bolo tie -- and promptly stole the show. He stacked empty plastic water bottles to demonstrate to reporters why his plan to liquefy Montana coal will reduce America's dependence on ''sheiks, dictators, rats, and crooks."

Staff reporter Susan Milligan contributed to this column.