Almanac of American Politics

This book has information regarding any canditate you what to know more. The book explain where the candidate stand in his/her believes.

My 1996 edition is so dog-eared, highlighted, and noted that you can tell it's one of my most common reference tools. I use it when politicians are on talk shows, to give me an idea of where they are coming from. It usually proves there is a huge media imbalance of views on network television, so I've switched to C-Span. Seeing a voting record clues me in on where a Congressman is likely to stand on an issue, before he opens his mouth. I use it for background information, and to send faxes and letters. I use it to keep track of my own Congressmen and to find others who have voted the way I would vote, to contact, if an important issue is pending for a vote. It's only big handicap is a lack of E-Mail addresses. I could do much more with it, if I had them. I highly recommend this book and am saving for an updated version.

Since 1971, every two years Michael Barone and Grant Ujifusa (in early editions Douglas Matthews also contributed) have teamed to provide a comprehensive study of the latest Congress just elected the previous November. This book is a staple of research inside the "beltway" of Washington D.C. and is priced by the standards of reference books sold there. The price can cause "sticker shock" for those of us located outside the beltway. Nonetheless, it is an invaluable research tool which belongs close at hand, near the desk of any one who hopes to speak knowledgeably to a member of Congress or a committee of Congress regarding any issue currently being voted on by Congress. Additionally, the book provides the most up-to-date information on the governors, lists the constitutional officers and provides the political makeup of the legislature of each of the 50 states.