A recent letter suggested that U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander is not conservative simply because he doesn’t score as highly as some others on the scorecard of a D.C. group. Tennessee conservatives know better than this.

Alexander’s conservative record is clear to anyone who has studied it. He’s not only consistently opposed Obamacare, for example, he has proposed free-market reforms he says will “repair the damage of Obamacare.” This is one of many ways his conservative values would help get our country headed in the right direction, from fixing the federal government’s debt to getting Washington to keep its hands off our local schools.

Anyone who insists on looking at scorecards will find no shortage of credible, conservative organizations that value Alexander’s record. The National Rifle Association recently gave him an A rating, and National Right to Life gave him a 100 percent rating and announced it was endorsing him. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Federation of Independent Business eagerly endorsed his re-election bid and held events at Tennessee businesses to show their enthusiasm.

The most important ranking, though, is what Lamar has gotten done. As governor he helped build our four-lane highway system — without racking up a single penny of road debt — and recruited the auto industry to Tennessee. As senator he has passed laws to keep the federal government from restricting fishing, to make medicines safer and to make college aid cheaper for students and fairer to taxpayers.

Tennesseans don’t need a senator who will follow a script written by some shadowy D.C. group. We need a senator who will stand up for conservative principles, act independently and get things done. By that standard, Alexander is the clear choice.

Gonzalo Torres, Rogersville,Tenn