Washington, DC – Today, Foreign Policy for America (FP4A) released its Legislative Scorecard for the 118th Congress, an educational resource for the public to better understand how elected officials voted on foreign policy and national security issues. As Andrew Albertson, executive director for Foreign Policy for America, wrote in the Scorecard’s opening letter:
Unfortunately, the 118th Congress will likely be remembered for discord and dysfunction. With a divided government, polarization reached new heights, particularly in the House of Representatives, resulting in one of the least productive Congresses in decades. In a troubling trend, we saw major foreign policy challenges treated as partisan issues. Whether on Ukraine, Israel, or immigration, Congress repeatedly held performative votes on politically driven legislation, further eroding America’s traditional bipartisan support for principled U.S. leadership in the world. At the same time, lawmakers failed to fully reauthorize key components of America’s foreign policy toolkit, such as the International Development Finance Corporation, PEPFAR, and the African Growth and Opportunities Act.
There were a few bright moments however, including the passage of State Department authorization provisions, as part of the annual defense bills, that codified important diplomatic initiatives and strengthened the Department’s workforce. Though delayed for months, Congress also passed additional assistance for Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression. While these actions were commendable, they were the exceptions to the overwhelmingly partisan tenor of the 118th Congress.
In the pages that follow, you can learn more about which Members of Congress have acted to strengthen our nation’s role as a global leader and keep Americans safe and prosperous. FP4A produces this scorecard with the advice and insight of the extraordinary members of our policy committee, made up of FP4A Advisory Board members and experts from partner organizations. Following several rounds of consultation and debate among participants, FP4A scores Members of Congress on the actions they took that are most representative of their positions on the 20 issues in our Legislative Agenda. Whenever possible, we score votes. At times, when widely considered legislation does not receive a floor vote, we score co-sponsorship of legislation as an alternative. For some issues, there are no measures we can reasonably score.
As we issue this scorecard, our country faces a crisis. The powers of Congress as outlined in the Constitution – to establish agencies and departments, to appropriate funds, and to regulate foreign commerce – are being contested. The Trump Administration has sparked tensions with our closest allies and trading partners, rejected the U.S. international leadership role in delivering foreign aid, and abandoned Ukrainians as they fight to stop Vladimir Putin.
But the future is not preordained. As our scorecard demonstrates, Congress can and must play a central role in shaping foreign policy. By shining a light on the voting patterns of our elected representatives, we hope to equip Americans with the tools to actively engage on these issues and to work together in support of strong, principled U.S. leadership in the world.
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