What this site is
Rigged Deck (riggeddeck.com) is a free, non-commercial, public-interest visualization of U.S. politics: the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, plus a state-by-state scorecard of how each state has fared during its current governor's tenure. It is intended for civic education, journalism, research, and informed public discussion. By using the site you agree to these terms.
Data sourcing & ethics
All data displayed on this site has been obtained ethically, from public records or under a paid commercial license:
- Public-domain federal records (Congress). Bioguide.congress.gov, Congress.gov, the Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act database, House and Senate financial-disclosure filings, the Federal Election Commission, the Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances, and the Congressional Research Service.
- Public-domain federal statistical agencies (governors page). State-level outcome data is sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS, CES, QCEW), Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Accounts (personal income, real GDP, Implicit Regional Price Deflator), the U.S. Census Bureau ACS, NCES NAEP, the CDC NCHS, and the FBI Crime Data Explorer (via api.usa.gov). Governor rosters come from the National Governors Association (with state-government fallbacks for the two governors NGA does not list).
- Public-domain civic-tech datasets:unitedstates/congress-legislators, released under CC0.
- Public secondary sources. Median home value comes from Zillow Research's ZHVI (free research download). Governor base salaries come from World Population Review as a public secondary source until each state's enabling statute is wired in directly.
- Licensed commercial API: net worth, disclosed trades, and lobbying aggregates are obtained via the Quiver Quantitative API under their published terms of service.
We do not scrape, reverse-engineer, or otherwise circumvent access controls on any data source. We do not display data that has been obtained through breach, theft, or unauthorized disclosure. Where a record cannot be confirmed against a public source we explicitly say so rather than fabricating a value.
Every numerical figure in the site (salary, net worth, trade volume, lobbying spend, statistical baseline) carries an inline source attribution linking back to its origin. If you spot a figure without a source link, please report it as a bug.
Accuracy & corrections
Public financial disclosures are filed in broad ranges (e.g., "$50,001–$100,000" per asset), not exact values, and are filed annually or within a 45-day disclosure window for trades. Aggregated estimates derived from these ranges are approximate by construction. We do our best to represent the underlying records faithfully, but figures shown should be treated as estimates with the cited methodology, not as audited statements.
If you believe a figure on Rigged Deck is incorrect, please send us the public source you believe should be cited instead and we will review and correct or remove the disputed figure.
What this site is not
Rigged Deck is not investment advice, legal advice, tax advice, electoral guidance, or a substitute for primary-source research. Stock-trade data is shown for civic-transparency purposes; it should not be construed as a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security.
The governors page reports state-level outcomes during each governor's tenure alongside the prior comparable window and the U.S. national average over the same window. This is a comparison, not a causal claim. A governor does not single-handedly drive a state's unemployment rate, GDP, or NAEP scores. The three-line format is intended to let readers form their own judgement; it is not a finding that the governor caused any movement, in either direction.
We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or speaking on behalf of any member of Congress, any governor, any political party, the U.S. federal government, any state government, or any of the data providers listed above.
Acceptable use
You are welcome to view, reference, and link to the site. You may quote figures and screenshots in news coverage, academic research, classroom instruction, and personal commentary, with attribution.
You may not:
- Republish bulk copies of the underlying licensed datasets (Quiver Quantitative content) — those are subject to Quiver's own license. Public-domain government records can be redistributed freely.
- Use the site to harass, threaten, or dox any individual, including any member of Congress or member of their family.
- Misrepresent figures (e.g., strip the source attribution and present a number out of context to imply something the underlying record does not support).
- Probe, attack, or otherwise interfere with the operation of the site.
Liability
The site is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, express or implied. To the maximum extent permitted by law, we disclaim liability for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, or punitive damages arising out of your access to or use of Rigged Deck.
Changes
If these terms materially change, the "Last updated" date at the top of this page will be revised and a brief note will be posted on the site.
Contact
For questions, source disputes, takedown requests, or licensing inquiries: [email protected].