A consistent voting record on certain topics can definitely show a person where a candidate's priorities lie and what their overall ideology is.
Again, the time period that votes were held on a certain topic does have to be taken into consideration, too. Context often get's thrown by the wayside when doing political comparisons of voting records on candidates.
Even so, this still does little to enamour me of Kerry so far; the more I look into his stint in the Senate, the less I like. There are certain areas that I'm not too hot on GWB, either; Governor or President.
On the biggies that, as a citizen, I'm concerned with, Bush has held the line...
Ultimately, a voting record is one of the best tools you've got to help make a decision. Taken alone, campaign promises and platforms are close to sewage in making up a person's mind, IMHO; the fact of the matter is that if Candidate A or B wins, he has to get the House and Congress talking the same language and a majority of them at that. Even within party lines and having majority control, it's not that easy.
I've never really cared for what a politician promises, especially during election time. I find it much more relevant to consider what they've done and what they haven't...
