Since you are reading this, you know that this is the online version of the paper assignment.  The sources and links below may help you in getting backgound material or evidence for your essays.

If you use online sources for your papers, be sure to attribute them properly.  For example, if I searched on CQ.com and found the article below, I would cite it as follows:

Koch, Kathy.  "School Vouchers: Should taxpayers help parents pay for private schools?"  The CQ Researcher, April 9, 1999. <http://libraryip.cq.com/cgi-bin/do_form.pl?rbotindexOP&backlink=S&ID=27159&record_id=Q_CQR19990409>, accessed 10/22/99.

OR

Koch, Kathy.  "School Vouchers: Should taxpayers help parents pay for private schools?"  The CQ Researcher, April 9, 1999. CQ Library, accessed 10/22/99.

Of course, In the first format, I didn't type in the entire URL; I just cut and pasted it.  Putting in the access date is important, because sometimes file locations change sites or disappear from the web.  If someone else reads your work and wants to track it down later, if they know when you accessed the site, they will be better able to find it even if it has moved locations.

Be sure you cite all sources correctly!: When citing sources that you draw upon in writing papers, be sure to cite them properly.  If you aren't sure what consitutes proper citatation, go here.

 Here are a few places to look for information:

The CQ Databases:  These are free to access on computers with GW IPs.  You can't access them from home unless you go through MyAladin or otherwise log into the system using your student ID.    The sure-fire way to access the databases.  Go to a GW computer lab and log in to Aladin.  Click on "social science database", then click  on "CQ Library".  Once there, you can log in to CQ Weekly or CQ Researcher and search by key words in your topic.    And if you still aren't satisfied (but remember, these are essays, not research papers), consult a reference librarian regarding how to search for articles most efficiently.

The CQ Almanac:  This useful reference book comes out annually and has a wealth of information about national politics.  You can find it in the reference room with call number

The Gallup web site:  If you are interested in using public opinion data as evidence, go the gallup web site and search on the topic of interest.

Other sources:  For coverage of policy issues, National Journal is excellent.  The Washington Post and New York Times also cover politics thoroughly, and you can search both newspapers via Aladin using the GW subscription to Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe.  Many of your topics are covered and studied by D.C. think tanks.  The Brookings Institution, for  example, has a great site on campaign finance reform.