Research Guides: United States Congress, Gov 2010: Getting Started

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Linnea Minich

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Subjects: Digital and Computational Studies, Economics, Government, History

Congress: Basic Information

Sessions of Congress
Wondering when Congressional sessions start and end? See this handy guide!
House of Representatives website
Find the directory of Representatives, list of committees, etc.
Senate website
Find the directory of Senators, list of committees, etc.

The Wayback Machine may have captured previous versions of a Member's website. "The Internet Archive Wayback Machine is a service that allows people to visit archived versions of Web sites. Visitors to the Wayback Machine can type in a URL, select a date range, and then begin surfing on an archived version of the Web."

Reference Sources

Almanac of American Politics
A volume is issued for each Congress. Organized by state. It includes for each member: biography, political activities, committees, key votes, group ratings, National Journal ratings, election results, and for members of the House, description of the district and demographics. Also includes leadership, state profiles, campaign finance, etc. The entries for the chairs and committee members may include discussion of those individuals' roles and activities on the committees.
Washington Information Directory
Includes information on committee jurisdiction and committee and subcommittee membership.
Congress.gov
Information on Congress provided by the government. Up-to-date.
Congressional Yellow Book
The Yellow Book provides information on Congresspeople, committees and staff. Especially helpful for finding information about home office staff. We have Yellow Books up to Spring 2022. Only in print.

The Congressional Record

There are various ways to find out what happened in Congress on a given day. Here are some links either to the official Congressional Record or to other records of activity (e.g. C-SPAN).

Congressional Record on Congress.gov
Search for keywords or browse by date.

HeinOnline
Go to "U.S Congressional Documents" then "Congressional Record."

Congressional Record on GovInfo
You can browse the Congressional Record or go to Search-->Advanced Search and then check the box for "Congressional Record" to search.
Congressional Chronicle on C-SPAN
Member information, committee information, votes, recorded and live video proceedings & hearings, and more. Browsable by date. Search using the Quick Guide (https://www.c-span.org/quick-guide/).

News and Newspapers

ProQuest U.S. Newsstream
Search for local and national U.S. news. Coverage: 1980 - current

Maine News
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Coverage of the Portland Press Herald, Maine Sunday Telegram, Lewiston Sun Journal, Kennebec Journal, Maine Times, Bangor Daily News, and Waterville Morning Sentinel. Dates of Coverage: varies-varies.

CQ Magazine
Published weekly. "In-depth reports on issues looming on the congressional horizon, plus a complete wrap up the previous week's news, including the status of bills in play, behind-the-scenes maneuvering, committee and floor activity, debates and all roll-call votes."
C-SPAN Video Library
Provides video of all C-SPAN programming since 1987, many on public policy.
Audio & Video News; Transcripts
Find more information about news sources as well as news transcripts on this page.
Roll Call
Newspaper focused on Capitol Hill and congressional and national elections. Find information about votes here.
Congress on Demand
Provides video of all the floor appearances of select members of Congress running in various congressional and national elections.

Find local TV news broadcasts by searching Google for local station websites. Then search these websites.

Searching for "Brunswick, ME local news" leads me to WMTW in Portland. I can search the WMTW site for any stories about Angus King using the template: “angus king” site:wmtw.com. You can do this with any site.

Many local news stations will also have a YouTube channel. WMTW's YouTube Channel

CQ Resources

CQ Almanac
Offer original narrative accounts of every major piece of legislation that lawmakers considered during a congressional session. Arranged thematically, CQ Almanac organizes, distills, and cross-indexes for permanent reference the full year in Congress and in national politics. Dates of Coverage: 1945-2020.
CQ Congress Collection
Comprehensive guide to Congress including members and voting data.
CQ Magazine (formerly CQ Weekly)
Up-to-date reports on the U.S. Congress, published weekly. Dates of Coverage: 1983-Present.
CQ Voting and Elections Collection
A database of elections data, authoritative analyses, concise explanations, and historical materials to help researchers investigate and understand voting and elections in America from 1789-present.