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Overview
In the past, the Congressional Record and its predecessors have been some of the most difficult government resources to use due to complexities and variations in their publication patterns and have largely been untapped by all but the most dedicated of researchers. That has now changed with the creation of the definitive digital edition from ProQuest.
ProQuest Congressional Record Permanent Digital Collection, offering unprecedented access to the authoritative digital full text of all four of these titles—the Congressional Record, Annals of Congress, the Register of Debates, and the Congressional Globe—provide researchers with a new perspective on American history, society, and politics. Not only will researchers be able to easily track legislative activities, they will also discover historically rich content inserted into the Record, including the text of bills, amendments to resolutions, roll call votes, conference reports, debates, correspondence to foreign governments from Cabinet secretaries, and much more.
- Content Type: Government & Official Publications
- MARC Records: Yes
- COUNTER Compliant: Yes
- OpenURL Enabled: Yes
Access more than just C-SPAN
In addition to presenting a verbatim account of what is said and done in the House and Senate chambers, the Record also contains extensive additional reprinting of inserted materials submitted by members, communications from the president and executive branch, petitions, texts of legislation introduced and/or passed and much more.
Understand legislative intent and rationale
Follow the discussion, debate, and analysis that goes on as lawmakers consider the bills that eventually become law.
Put legislative content into context
As bills move through the legislative process, the various versions of the text of a bill are often entered into the Record, along with reports from congressional committees. These documents, when reviewed together, keep the issue in context as it happens and is debated.
Access the evolution of American policy
Students and faculty doing research in American political, economic, education, foreign, social, health, and welfare policies will find the Record provides primary source account of the discussions that occurred on the floor of Congress as our leaders debated change.
Follow a debate with superior indexing
Each congressional day is richly indexed with a detailed record that provides users with the full text of the day, allowing searchers to look across many types of legislative content with one thesaurus. The digital edition makes it easy to move from day to day to follow an issue’s debate.
Quickly and easily search over 200 years of congressional debate using special functionality
Search the collection by keywords, members of Congress, proceeding content types, roll call votes, bill and resolution numbers, legal citations and much more!
Local perspective in a federal venue
Members of Congress frequently introduce material into the Record to recognize individuals or commemorate events back home. Content includes poems, prayers, articles, and editorials.
Evaluate language and rhetoric
Evaluate changes in language and rhetoric over time. Examine the way arguments are constructed and issues are debated as members of Congress grapple with the concerns of the day.
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