An anti-Trump conservative group will grade whether Republicans in Congress have acted to either undermine or uphold democratic values
Only 14 Republicans in Congress received an “A,” the highest possible grade. In contrast, more than 100 Republicans received an “F,” the lowest possible grade.
The initiative and its findings underscore the divide in the Republican Party over how to move forward in the wake of the deadly January 6 Capitol attack and Trump’s lies that the 2020 election was stolen. While many in the party continue to embrace the former President and his political legacy, some Republicans and conservatives have argued that the party must change course and hold those who participated in efforts to overturn the election accountable for their actions.
Troye, who calls herself “a radically moderate conservative,” said the report card “says a lot about where the Republican Party is” and “speaks to the overall direction of where the GOP is based on where Trump has played a role and led it and how Trumpism has taken ahold of the base of the party.”
The grades are based on a set of four criteria and how lawmakers acted in relation to them, including whether a GOP lawmaker objected to the certification of Electoral College votes and if he or she voted to impeach or convict Trump for inciting the deadly January 6 attack.
The report card is also an effort to shine a spotlight on what GOP lawmakers did in the run up to and immediate aftermath of the election so that those events — and their actions — won’t be forgotten.
“Actions have consequences and this is part of us working to hold these individuals accountable and not let them get away with it as time passes and they try to move past it and paint it under a different light,” Troye said, adding that voters can also use the tool to identify lawmakers “who have been actively trying to do what’s right for the country.”
Some of the GOP lawmakers assigned an “A” grade according to the rating system include: Sens. Mitt Romney of Utah and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska as well as House GOP conference chair Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, the No. 3 House Republican.
CNN reached out to the offices of the six lawmakers to request comment.
Romney, Murkowski and Cheney all voted to either impeach or convict Trump, did not object to the certification of Electoral College votes and did not sign onto the Texas amicus brief. In contrast, McCarthy, Scalise and Brooks voted against impeachment, signed onto the Texas amicus brief and supported objections to the Electoral College certification.
The Republican Accountability Project has profile pages on its website for GOP lawmakers in the report card database, some of which feature notable public statements related to events like the election and the Capitol attack.
McCarthy’s profile page features a comment the House GOP leader made to Fox News in which he said, “President Trump won this election. So everyone who’s listening, do not be quiet, do not be silent about this. We cannot allow this to happen before our very eyes, we need to unite together.”
CNN’s Daniella Diaz, Alex Rogers, Michael Warren and Jeremy Herb contributed to this report.