Congress.gov is the official website for U.S. federal legislative information and is developed and maintained by the Library of Congress using data originated and owned by the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. The site provides access to accurate, timely, and complete legislative information for Members of Congress, legislative agencies, and…
Historical newspaper coverage: Representative Margaret Chase Smith Historical newspaper coverage: Senator Margaret Chase Smith Margaret Chase Smith image set Margaret Chase Smith brief bio and image set Margaret Chase Smith Library Margaret Chase Smith biography and bibliography United States House of Representatives Margaret Chase Smith: A Declaration of Conscience background with link to her speech…
In the article, Teaching Impeachment in Politically Risky Times, Education Week discusses the issues teachers face in the current context and the importance of seizing this teachable moment. “For the nation’s government and civics teachers, it all comes down to this: The wheels of a rarely used, constitutionally prescribed process—impeachment—have been set in motion. And…
Today in History–September 20–the Library of Congress features the abolishment of the slave trade in Washington D.C., which was a feature of a legislative package known as the Compromise of 1850. Learn more by reading the Today in History section, then clicking the links below to access related primary & secondary sources. Compromise of 1850:…
Today in History–May 12–the Library of Congress features politician and historian Henry Cabot Lodge, born on this day in 1850. Lodge was a long-standing member of Congress, serving the state of Massachusetts as a U.S. representative from 1887 to 1893 and a U.S. senator from 1893 to 1924. This Republican statesman is perhaps best known for his staunch argument against U.S….
Practical illustration of the Fugitive Slave Law Effects of the Fugitive-Slave-Law Triumph Fugitive slave law political cartoons Fugitive slave bill … Approved, September 18, 1850. Millard Fillmore Things to be remembered. Remember that the Whig administration of Millard Fillmore enacted the Fugitive Slave bill, in violation of the constitution and all the legal safeguards of…
Today in History–May 16–the Library of Congress features presidential impeachments. On this day in 1868, the U.S. Senate failed by one vote to convict President Andrew Johnson of “high crimes and misdemeanors,” under the eleventh article of impeachment. The second trial of a U.S. president—President Bill Clinton—on articles of impeachment occurred in January and February of 1999….
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Today in History–October 23–the Library of Congress features the Lend-Lease Act. On this day in 1941 the U.S. stepped closer to direct involvement in World War II when the Senate passed a $5.98 billion supplemental Lend-Lease bill. The Lend-Lease Act, passed in March, 1941, gave President Roosevelt nearly unlimited power to provide the Allies with material aid without officially…
Today in History–July 26–the Library of Congress features Liberia, declared an independent republic on this day in 1847. Formerly a colony of the American Colonization Society—organized in 1817 to resettle free black Americans in West Africa—Joseph Jenkins Roberts was elected the first president of the republic in 1848. Find out more by visiting the Today in History section, then click the links below to…
Today in History–February 21–the Library of Congress features Richard Nixon, who began an eight-day visit to China on this day in 1972. President Nixon was the first U.S. president to visit the People’s Republic of China since its founding in 1949. Find out a bit more about U.S.-Chinese relations by visiting the Today in History section, then follow the…