Chapter 10 Notes

Chapter 10 – Interest Groups
Learning Objectives

After reading this chapter, students should be able to:
Define the key terms at the end of the chapter
Outline the positive and negative roles played by interest groups in American politics.
Explain how interest groups form
Create a profile of the kind of person most likely to be represented by an interest group.
Describe the major resources interest groups use in their efforts to influence policy.
List the tactics used by interest groups to win the support of policymakers.
Account for the recent increase in the number of interest groups.
Discuss the difficulties involved in trying to reform the role of interest groups in American politics.

Chapter Synopsis
The existence of interest groups represents a fundamental dilemma for the American political system. Interest groups work to gain advantages for themselves at the expense of the larger population. Indeed, Madison warned that “factions” would go as far as to suppress the rights of others to achieve their objectives. Yet interest groups are a manifestation of liberty; curbing interest groups means curbing freedom.

Interest groups do play many positive roles. Among other things, they represent people before their government. Yet a troubling aspect of interest group politics has to do with the nature of this representation. Some segments of society (particularly the wealthy, well educated, and businesses) are more likely to be represented by lobbying organizations than other constituencies are. This inequity is also manifested in the resources available to groups.

In recent years we have observed an upsurge in the number of interest groups. The most troubling aspect of that growth is the increasingly significant role political action committees, or PAC’s play in financing congressional elections. The greatest portion of PAC contributions come from corporate PAC’s. Critics charge that PAC’s gain undue advantage from the access they gain with contributions. They argue that PAC’s exacerbate the inequities in American society. Defenders respond that PAC’s are a way in which people can participate in politics. Moreover, shouldn’t people have the freedom to join together with other like-minded Americans to promote the candidates they believe in?

Parallel Lecture:
An interest group can be defined as “an organized body of individuals who share some political goals and try to influence public policy”.


Roles of Interest Groups:
Representation: interest groups represent their constituents before government

Participation: they facilitate people’s participation in politics

Education: efforts made by interest groups help to educate their members, the public at large, and government officials

Agenda Building: news issues are brought onto the political agenda through interest group advocacy

Program monitoring: Lobbying organizations keep track of how programs are working in the field and try to persuade government to take action when problems become evident

Interest group formation:
Pluralists such as David Truman see interest groups naturally forming when people are adversely affected by a disturbance

Yet some people who are adversely affected do not organize

Political Scientist Robert Salisbury argues that the quality of leadership is a key determinant of successful interest group formation

He sees an interest group leader as an entrepreneur. The entrepreneur must convince potential members that there are compelling reasons to join the group.

Who is being organized is also an important force affecting group formation. The wealthy and well-educated are more likely to form and join lobbies.
Resources:
One of the most valuable resources a group can have is a large and politically active membership

Business, professional, and trade associations have an easier time holding onto members than citizen groups do.

A citizen group must rely largely on ideological appeals. Many try to attract new members through direct mail (e-mail)

Free-rider problem: non-members can obtain the public policy benefits of the organization’s lobbying even though they pay no dues

Lobbyists can be either full-time employees of the organization, or hired from law firms or public relations firms.

The typical interaction between a lobbyist and a policymaker is the transmission of information from the lobbyist to the official
Political Action Committees pool contributions from group members and donate those funds to candidates for office

Two types of PAC’s have shown the greatest growth in numbers
Corporate PAC’s
Non-Connected PAC’s (ideological PAC’s formed solely for channeling funds)

The primary goal of PAC’s is to gain access to incumbents

The role of PAC’s in financing elections has become the most controversial aspect of interest group politics

In Direct lobbying, a group’s representatives have direct contact with a policymaker

Lobbyists make personal presentations

Testifying before committees is another direct tactic

Organizations may go to court and litigate

In grassroots lobbying, an interest group’s rank and file members, and possibly others outside the organization, try to influence government on some issue

Letter writing is one such tactic

Political protests are sometimes held

Information campaigns are organized efforts to gain public backing by bringing the group’s views to the public’s attention
newspaper advertising, sending speaker’s to meetings, disseminating pamphlets or fact sheets
sponsoring research
some groups publicize the voting records of Congress
Coalition Building takes place when several groups join together in a lobbying campaign

Lobbying must be evaluated through the pluralist and majoritarian frameworks

Lobbying reinforces the pluralist definition of who has power in policymaking

However, since elections are majoritarian, the party in power tends to have more say in policymaking

One problem is membership bias – some types of people (middle class & upper middle classes) are far better represented by organized interest groups

Lower-income people tend to be represented by issue-oriented lobbies whose members are not poor but whose policy positions address the problems of the poor

Public interest groups are those that have no economic self-interest in the policies they pursue
Common Cause pushes for good government legislation
public interest groups can be liberal or conservative

the number of business lobbies has increased significantly

Both the number of trade associations and the number of corporate offices located in Washington, DC has gone up sharply

The growth of federal regulation is one reason the number of business lobbies is growing

Access: while govt. officials may limit access by certain interest groups, other officials, with differing ideologies, keep the door open

However, all forms of access are not equally useful to interest groups, and some groups have better access over time.

Reform: it is difficult to put limits on interest groups without limiting fundamental freedoms

More recently, Congress has required disclosure of all campaign contributions so sources can be identified

In 1995, Congress passed a law requiring lobbyists to register and file semi-annual reports disclosing their clients, the amount of money they spent on lobbying activities, and the amount of money they were paid

Reformers have called for reducing the role of PAC’s in financing elections

The controversy over PAC’s reflects the tension between the principles of freedom and equality

Critics charge that PAC’s reinforce, if not expand, the inequities between rich and poor

PAC supporters counter that people should have the right to join with others who think as they do and support the candidates of their choice