Some more general databases often include government information, articles about the government and how it works, and sometimes reports from government agencies and Congress as well. Here are some you may wish to try.

Founded in 1923, CQ Researcher provides original, authoritative reports on newsworthy social and political issues. Covering topics in public policy, law, civil liberties, international affairs, economics, health, education, the environment, technology, and more, CQ Researcher is renowned for its objectivity, breadth, and depth of coverage.

How is a CQ Researcher report created?

CQ Researcher's editors identify a topic to be investigated, then one of the experienced journalists conceives the report's broad outlines, formulating the key questions the report will seek to answer; reads background material; interviews a range of sources; synthesizes available information; and writes the report. The average time to complete a report is five weeks.

Every report includes:

·Overview of the Issue   ·Current Situation   ·Chronology   ·Pro/Con Debate   ·Short Features   ·Maps/Graphs   ·Bibliography   ·Next Steps

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) is a division of the Library of Congress. They produce highly respected analytical, non-partisan reports on topics of interest to members of Congress. While it is not in their mandate to disseminate their reports to the public, there are a number of free and subscription sites where you can find CRS reports. You can also request copies from your Congressional Representative.

Here are some of the free sites:

• EveryCRSReport

This website from DemandProgress contains new Congressional Research Service (CRS) reports  -- https://www.everycrsreport.com/. There are about 8,400 reports on the site, with more coming each week. Their reports come straight from Congress, there is no charge for access, and they make the reports available for bulk download.

• Federation of American Scientists CRS Reports 

A very good site for current reports, organized by broad category but not very searchable nor historic.​

• University of North Texas (UNT) Digital Library CRS Reports 

A great collection and very searchable but a long delay in posting the most current reports.

• Thurgood Marshall Law Library 

CRS reports in Homeland Security/Terrorism and Health Law & Policy

Included here are direct online links to many of the basic Federal Government documents that define the history of our democracy. Many are drawn from the GPO Access page Core Documents of Our Democracy (http://www.gpo.gov/libraries/core_docs.htm), though with several revisions and additions. They are included here as a service.

Cornerstone Documents

Moving Images: News & Public Affairs

FedFlix (http://www.archive.org/details/FedFlix) is a joint venture between the National Technical Information Service (NTIS) and Public.Resource.Org, the creator of the web page archive WaybackMachine. Here are the best movies of the United States Government, from training films to history, from our national parks to the U.S. Fire Academy and the Postal Inspectors, all of these are available for reuse without any restrictions.

Online Games

iCivics (http://www.icivics.org/) is a web-based education project designed to teach students  civics and inspire them to be active participants in our democracy. While meant for younger students, these games are fun and non-preachy way of learning a little bit about how all the branches of our government work together.