Today's Congress

• Guide to Today’s Congress
• Write to Congress
• Tips for Contacting Members
• Congressional Schedules and Calendars
• Legislation
• Congressional Record
• Leaders for Today's Congress
• Party Division in the House
• Party Division in the Senate
• Congressional Districts
• Elections and Candidates
• Guide to Media Outlets

Congress: The Basics

• The Context

  Resources

  • Capitol Hill Map
  • The Federalist Papers
  • Library of Congress: Architecture and Symbolism
  • State of the Union Address, 1790
  • U.S. Constitution
  • Congressional Research Service Reports

  Expert Views

  • The American History and Civics Education Act
  • The Case for Representative Democracy: What American Ought to Know about Their Legislatures
    • Do You Trust Our Congress?
  • Reflections of a British Intern
  • Reform the Electoral College: Two Views from Congress
  • “Virtual Congress” Would Weaken Deliberative Process
  • What High School Government Teachers Should Know about Congressional Elections
  • Why It is Important to Vote
  • Speaking Up for Congress: How Does Congress Defend Freedom?

• The Institution

  Resources

  • Awards, Honors, and Medals Awarded by Congress
  • Basic Information
  • Bicameralism: Congress as Two Chambers
  • Budgeting to Set Up a Congressional Office
  • Congressional Research Service Reports
  • Congressional Pay
  • Congressional Session Timeline
    
  • Congressional Travel
  • Congressional Workload
  • History of the Senate and House
  • House Art, Artifacts, and Architecture
  • House Chaplains
  • House Chief Administrative Officers
  • House Clerks
  • House Doorkeepers
  • House Historic Ceremonies and Events
  • House History Timeline
  • House Library
  • House Page History
  • House Parliamentarians
  • House Postmasters
  • House Sergeants at Arms
  • House Rules of Operation
  • Investigations
  • Partisan Composition of the House
  • Partisan Composition of the Senate
  • Rules of Procedure
  • Senate Bibliography
  • Senate Censure/Condemnation Cases
  • Senate:  Classic Speeches
  • Senate Desk Assignments and History
  • Senate Facts and Milestones
  • Senate Graphic Arts
  • Senate Historical Minutes
  • Senate Institutional Development
  • Senate Officers and Staff
  • Senate Oral History Project
  • Senate Organizational Chart
  • Senate Paintings
  • Senate Photographic Collection
  • Senate Photographic Exhibits
  • Senate Powers and Procedures
  • Senate Rules
  • Senate Sculpture
  • Senate Timeline
  • Senate Traditions
  • Senate Treaty Ratifications
  • Sessions of Congress:  Definitions and History
  • Staff Pay
  • Staff Positions
  • Strategic Planning for a Congressional Office
  • Supreme Court Nominations
  • Vetoes
  • Voting Procedures, History

  Expert Views

  • Building on Common Ground: Balancing Debate with Dialog in Congress
  • Understanding Congressional Decisions through Vectors
  • "Can We Talk? Free Speech and Civil Discourse in Turbulent Times"
  • Being a Partner and Critic to the Congress
  • Reporting on Congress: The Role of the Media

• Lawmaking

  Resources

  • Bill Becomes Law
  • Civil Rights Act of 1964: Essay
    • Major Features of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
  • Civil Rights Act of 1964: Documents
    • White House Press release, February 28, 1963
    • Thomas Dodd to Everett Dirksen, May 23, 1963
    • Excerpt from E. Dirksen Notebook, ca. July 1963
    • Civil Rights Legislation, January 22, 1964
    • H.R. 7152, February 10, 1964
    • Congressional Record, February 17, 1964
      • Transcript
    • Bruce Butterfield to Dirksen, February 24, 1964
      • Transcript
    • Legislative History of H.R. 7152, ca. March 1964
    • Petition, April 1964
    • Backers of Rights Bill Map a Sudden Switch in Strategy, June 1964
    • An Idea Whose Time Has Come, June 1964
      • Senator Dirksen on the Civil Rights Bill
    • Thanks to Dirksen, June 5, 1964
    • Civil Rights, June 10, 1964
    • Roy Wilkins to Dirksen, June 12, 1964
    • Form letters on civil rights and cloture
    • Senator Byrd's Account of the Filibuster of 1964 Civil Rights Legislation
    • Senator Everett M. Dirksen's Speech to the Senate, The Civil Rights Bill, June 10, 1964
      
  • Civil Rights Act of 1964: Everett Dirksen's Finest Hour
  • Civil Rights Documentation Project
  • Congressional Bills Project
  • Congressional Research Service Reports on Congress
  • Legislative Process Overview
  • Making Laws Simply Explained
  • Making Laws:  The House
  • Making Laws:  The Senate
  • U.S. Constitution
    • The Preamble
    • Article I: The Legislative Branch
    • Article II: The Executive Branch
    • Article III: The Judicial Branch
    • Articles IV - VII and the Signers
    • The Bill of Rights
    • Amendments to the Constitution
  • Voting Rights Act of 1965
    • Radio-TV Weekly Report, March 15, 1965, "The Old Problem of Voting Rights"
    • Form Letter, "Voting Rights Act of 1965"
    • "Voting Rights. The Consent of the Governed"
    • Letter, J. Bingham to E. Dirksen, July 22, 1965
  • Voting Rights Act of 1965: Essay
  • See also information posted at: Congress: The Institution

  Expert Views

  • Understanding Congressional Decisions through Vectors

• Leaders

  Resources

  • Congressional Leadership Statements
  • Congressional Research Service Reports
  • House Majority and Minority Leaders
  • House Democratic Caucus Chairman
  • House Democratic Whips
  • House Republican Conference Chairman
  • House Republican Whips
  • Joint Senate-House Republican Leadership Press Statements, 1961-68
  • Leaders for Today’s Congress
  • Leadership Overview
  • Leadership Offices in the House
  • Leadership Positions
  • Speakers of the House
  • Senate Leader’s Lecture Series, 1998-2002
  • Senate Leadership Overview
  • Senate Majority and Minority Leaders
  • Senate President Pro Tempore
  • Vice Presidents of the United States

  Expert Views

  • In the Shadow of Watergate: Bob Michel Becomes a Congressional Leader
  • Robert H. Michel Leadership Statements, 1982-90
  • The Speaker of the House on the Nature of His Office, 2003

• Members

  Resources

  • Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress
  • Black Americans in Congress
  • Congressional Profile
  • Congressional Research Service Reports
  • Congressman:  A Case Study
  • Election of Members:  Historical and Current Information
  • Everett McKinley Dirksen
  • Everett McKinley Dirksen:  Obituary and Eulogy
  • House Members Who Became President or Presidential Candidates’
  • House Members Who Became Members of the Supreme Court
  • Partisan Composition of the House
  • Partisan Composition of the Senate
  • Ray LaHood
  • Robert H. Michel
  • Senate Salaries Since 1789
  • Senators:  A List of All of Have Served
  • Senators:  Ethnic Diversity
  • Senators Representing Third or Minor Parties
  • Senators Who Became President
  • Senators Who Changed Parties During Their Service
  • Senators Who Have Been Appointed
  • Senators:  Women Who Have Served
  • What Members of Congress Do
  • Women in Congress

  Expert Views

  • An Effective Congress and Effective Members: What Does It Take?
  • How to Communicate Effectively with Congress Members

Congress: Teaching It

• Resources
  
  
  • Lesson Plans on CongressLink

    Congressional Elections

    • Congressional Reapportionment/Redistricting
      • Imaginary Reapportionment Map
    • Sample Imaginary Reapportionment Map
    • Finding Purpose in Political Propaganda Mailers
    • Winning the Seat: A Congressional Election Simulation

    • Congressional Elections Are Worth the Time and Attention
    • How to Play the Game
      • Scorecard for Determining Election Results
    • Case Studies
      • Case Study #1 - Congressman Pothole Loses Touch
      • Case Study #2 - The All-Out Ideological War
      • Case Study #3 - The Scandal
      • Case Study #4 - The Extremist
      • Case Study #5 - The Redistricting
      • Resources for Case Studies
        
    • Determining the Election Results
      • Scorecard for Determining Election Results
    • Help Students Excel During the Simulation
    • Resources for Teachers
    • Elect Me! Creating a Campaign Platform and Advertisement
    • Election Activity: Decision 2004
      • Presidential Ballot
      • Election Group Rubric
      • Party Faction Labels
      • Political Spectrum Test
    • Noncompetitive Elections for Congress
    • What Makes a Great Campaign Brochure?
      

    Congressional History

    • The Compromise of 1850
      • Compromise of 1850
    • Constitutional Convention: The Great Compromise
    • The Great Compromise: A House Divided
    • Eulogy and Obituary as Historical Evidence
    • Highlights of the Senate: Creating a Timeline of the Senate's History
    • How a Bill Becomes Law: The Civil Rights Act of 1964
    • Lessons from the Roman Republic
    • Role of Congress in Formulating Policy
    • Simulation Debate: Civil Rights Bill
      

    Congressional Powers

    • 2, 4, 6, 8…Who Knows What's in Article I, Section 8? (or Powers of Congress)
    • Congressional Powers
    • Congressional Power, Organization, the Differences Between the House and the Senate, and Criticisms Then and Now
    • War-Making: The Use of a Congressional Power
    • What in the World Should Congress Do?

    Congressional Process

    • Checks and Balances: The Line Item Veto
    • Congress and Interest Groups
    • Congressional Committee Simulation: Raising the Minimum Wage
    • Congressional Workload
    • Creating a Television Ad for an Interest Group
    • The Creation of a Bill: Mr. Smith and You
    • House Floor Debate Simulation
      • Overview and How It Works
      • The E-Rate Debate
      • The Privacy Debate
      • The Vending Machine Debate
    • How a Bill Becomes a Law: Charting the Path
    • Identifying Legislators and the Legislative Process
    • Iron Triangles
    • Logrolling
    • Making Congress Work Through Leadership
    • Mock Senate Simulation
    • Senate Re-enactment
    • Simulating Congressional Action in the Classroom
      • Student Packet
      • Guidelines for Drafting Legislation
      • Reflective Paper:  Suggested Topics
      • Bill Format Samples
        
    • Standing Committee Chest: Understanding the Standing Committees of Congress
    • The State of the Union Address
    • The Veto Process
    • What Can You Learn about Congress from Pictures?

    Members of Congress

    • A Congressional Scavenger Hunt
    • A Day in the Life of a Senator
    • Communicating with Your Members of Congress
    • Creating a Metaphor for the Three Branches of Government
    • How Representative is Congress?
    • Introducing the Freshman Class of the 111th Congress
    • The Job of a Member of Congress
    • Legislative Branch - Want Ads: An Introductory Lesson
    • Making Your Views Known: Writing a Letter to Congress
    • Meet Your Representatives
    • What Makes a Congressional Leader?
    • Why Do We Need a Congress Anyway?

    U.S. Constitution

    • A Mock Constitutional Convention
    • Amending the Constitution
    • Class Constitution
    • Teaching the Amendments
    • The U.S. Constitution Power Grab Game
    • You Can Lead a Class to Water, But Can You Make It Think? (An Activity for Teaching the Concept of “Implied Power”)*

    Other

    • An Introduction to Representative Government
    • Congress: A Vocabulary Review
    • Congress and the Courts
    • Congress and Gay Marriage
    • Congress' s Accomplishments…What Has Congress Done for You?
    • Congress on Trial
    • Creating a Citizen's Guide to Congress
    • Design Your Own Interest Group Network: The Nader Formula
    • Does It Matter if We Participate in Representative Government? A Socratic Seminar
    • Experiencing Change
    • Getting Involved: How Can You Participate in Representative Government?
    • Greater Debates Issue #1: Does the Two-Party System Adequately Represent the People?
    • Greater Debates Issue #2: Does the Separation of Powers Produce Ineffective Government?
    • Greater Debate Issues #3: Should Moral Principle Matter in Politics?
    • Knowledge is Power
    • U.S. Capitol
    • Party Time
    • Political Cartoon Analysis
    • Political Cartoon Interpretation
    • The Public’s View of Congress: A Study in Contrasts Through Film
    • The Saga of the Money Trail - Developing the Federal Budget
    • Survivor Island
    • Hilary G. Conklin's "What is Representative Government?"

  • Lesson Plans on the Web
  
  
  
  • WebQuests
    • WebQuest Overview
    • WebQuest: What Do I Really Think? A Political Issue Research Activity
    • WebQuest: How Influential is Your Member of Congress?
    • WebQuest: The Job of Leading Congress
    • WebQuest: Leading the 112th Congress
    • WebQuest: The Legislative Process
    • WebQuest: Congressional Leadership
    • WebQuest: Comparing Voting Records of Congress Members
    • WebQuest: A Simulated Cabinet Meeting [hosted by another site]

  • Web Sites about Congress
  • Online Textbooks
  • Glossary
  • Historical Notes
  • Student Assessment Rubric
  • Bloom’s Taxonomy
  • Communicator
  • Editorial Cartoon Project
  • Civil Rights Documentation Project
  • The 1960s: A Multi-Media View of Capitol Hill
  
  
  
• Expert Views
  
  
  • The Voices of Your Classroom are the Voices of Our Future
  • What Do Students See When They Look at Congress?
  • What Every Student Should Know about Congress
    • Letters Requesting Committee Assignments
  • What High School Government Teachers Should Know about Congressional Elections
  • What I Wish Political Scientists Would Teach about Congress
  • Reporting on Congress: The Role of the Media
  • The Ten Most Important Things to Know About the U.S. Senate
  • The Ten (Really Twelve) Most Important Things to Know about the House of Representatives