I finally realized that U.S. sports channels just aren’t going to bend to my will and start showing more rugby. The result of this is that I’ve been watching a lot of American football lately instead. One thing I’ve always noticed when watching football is how many commercial breaks there are during the game. During …
For the next installment of the Beginner’s Guide series, I turn to a subject that is of recurring interest to our patrons—how to find congressional voting records (also called roll call information). This topic presents more challenges than may be readily apparent, because researchers must not only determine what resources cover the period of time …
For those of us who are global legal news buffs, 2012 was a great year. I am speaking of the Global Legal Monitor (GLM), a Law Library of Congress publication which provides summaries on new legal developments around the world. In 2012, GLM published 512 articles on a range of legal issues in various jurisdictions. …
The idea of republican simplicity is a relic from the age of the American Revolutionary War. To get at its meaning, it’s easiest to meditate on its opposite. Think to yourself: How do I address a king? Am I meant to bow/curtsey? How low? What do I do with my hands while I bow? Do …
The following is a guest post by George Sadek, a Senior Legal Analyst at the Law Library of Congress. Last week George provided an overview of the drafting process and content of the Egyptian Constitution of 2012. He has also previously written posts on Egypt’s constitutional referendum and several other topics. In my last post, …
Following the launch of Congress.gov in September 2012, we made minor updates in October and November, and made the transition to the 113th Congress at the beginning of January. Today, our public beta gets a big enhancement with the addition of the Congressional Record. The Congressional Record page defaults to the most recent issue with the tab for the Daily Digest selected and …
Every four years, just after the Presidential election, the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform (alternately) release a compilation called The United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions, better known as the “Plum Book.” This compilation features a list of over 7,000 civil service leadership and …
Israeli voters are going to the polls today (January 22, 2013) to cast their ballots for the 19th Knesset (Israel’s parliament). Unlike in the U.S., where after the ballots are counted the presidential winner can go ahead with selecting his cabinet, the winner of the Israeli elections is not necessarily going to head the upcoming …
Construction of the inaugural platform continues as January 21st draws closer. This picture was taken on December 25, 2012. Here is another inauguration-related trivia question: How many times in our nation’s history has Inauguration Day fallen on a Sunday, and how has this scheduling issue been handled?