Congressional Best Practices

It is important that constituents know who represents them in Congress. Part of knowing who represents you also comes with knowing a representative's or Senator's position and voting record on a particular issue. It is important that elected officials provide this information on their sites. Educational resources are perhaps the next most important tool to be placed on an effective website. It is very important to foster the ability of constituents to think critically on an issue. Representatives and Senators who clearly explain why they voted a certain way on an issue or why they support a certain cause do more to develop a good repoire with constituents than one that does not wish to explain their actions. Fundamentally, the best practice that a representative or Senator should do on their sites is to promote transparency whenever possible. I feel that if constituents understand the reasoning and though process behind a decision made by their elected official, they are more likely to respect it and understand it even if they do not agree with it.