The Taxpayers League of Minnesota, releasing its annual "legislative scorecard" (PDF) for the last session, has deemed eight state lawmakers each a "Best Friend of the Taxpayer."

"The Taxpayers League Legislative Scorecard is the best device Minnesotans have to determine who's after their wallet and what lawmakers intend to do with it once they've got it," a press release quotes Phil Krinkie, president of the group and a former state rep who was so unyielding in his votes he became known as Dr. No at the Capitol.

The eight selected, it should come as no surprise, are Republicans, and had perfect "100" scores on 11 House and Senate votes.

Drumroll please: The 2008 "Best Friends" are Rep. Bruce Anderson, R-Buffalo Township; Rep. Mark Buesgens, R-Jordan; Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Delano; Rep. Tom Hackbarth, R-Cedar; Rep. Mark Olson, R-Big Lake; Sen. David Hann, R-Eden Prairie; Sen. Warren Limmer, R-Maple Grove; and Sen. Julianne Ortman, R-Chanhassen.

On the other side of the planet, a good number of DFLers achieved a kind of inverse perfection, scoring a "0" from the league.

Among those were some usual suspects, including Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller, DFL-Minneapolis; Sen. Linda Higgins, DFL-Minneapolis; Sen. Richard Cohen, DFL-St. Paul; Assistant Senate Majority Leader Tarryl Clark, DFL-St. Cloud; House Majority Leader Tony Sertich, DFL-Chisholm; Rep. Phyllis Kahn, DFL-Minneapolis; Rep. Jean Wagenius, DFL-Minneapolis; and House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, DFL-Minneapolis.