Research Resources
The Rational Moderate relies on transparent, verifiable data to ground every piece of analysis. This page brings together the government datasets, statistical portals, and long‑running research series we use most often in our work.
Checked The full check
- 13 claims
- 13 match a source
- 0 need one
- 0 unreachable
13 of 13 claims match a source
Claim by claim: what the check found
| Claim | Finding |
|---|---|
| Congress.gov: bill text and summaries, sponsors, committee actions, roll call votes | Matches a source |
| CBO: budget analysis, economic projections, cost estimates and scoring | Matches a source |
| GAO: program evaluations, audits and federal performance reports | Matches a source |
| OMB: budget documents and federal performance resources | Matches a source |
| CRS policy research reports are available via congressional offices or EveryCRSReport.com | Matches a source |
| FEC: campaign finance filings, enforcement actions, election data | Matches a source |
| GovTrack.us: congressional tracking and analysis tools | Matches a source |
| LegiStorm: congressional staff, salaries and financial disclosures | Matches a source |
| BLS: employment, wages, inflation (CPI), productivity | Matches a source |
| BEA: GDP and national accounts, regional economic data | Matches a source |
| FRED: curated time series with download and visualization tools | Matches a source |
| Census Bureau: demographics, income and poverty, housing, business data | Matches a source |
| Treasury: debt data, extraordinary measures and related updates | Matches a source |
A living directory of the primary data sources and research institutions used in our reporting and analysis. We prioritize primary sources, transparent methodology, and up-to-date releases.
U.S. government data sources
Federal legislative and executive
- Congress.gov: Bill text and summaries, sponsors, committee actions, roll call votes
- Congressional Budget Office (CBO): Budget analysis, economic projections, cost estimates and scoring
- Government Accountability Office (GAO): Program evaluations, audits, and federal performance reports
- Office of Management and Budget (OMB): Budget documents and federal performance resources
- Congressional Research Service (CRS): Policy research reports (available via congressional offices or EveryCRSReport.com)
- Federal Election Commission (FEC): Campaign finance filings, enforcement actions, election data
- GovTrack.us: Congressional tracking and analysis tools
- LegiStorm: Congressional staff, salaries, and financial disclosures
Economic data
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS): Employment, wages, inflation (CPI), productivity
- Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA): GDP and national accounts, regional economic data
- FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data): Curated time series with download and visualization tools
- U.S. Census Bureau: Demographics, income and poverty, housing, business data
- U.S. Department of the Treasury: Debt data, extraordinary measures, and related updates
Verification and update standards
- Cross-check key stats across at least two credible sources when possible.
- Confirm release dates and note revisions (especially for economic series).
- Link to primary documents (tables, technical notes, methodology pages).
- Prefer transparent methods and clearly documented definitions.
Access notes
- Some sources require accounts, subscriptions, or institutional access. When access is restricted, we link to official public landing pages and note alternatives where available.