Interest Groups 1
Interest group: any organization that seeks to influence public policy Many kinds of cleavages in the country mean that there are many different interests cdproject.net2 aviewfromtheright.com
The Constitution provides many access points to government Political parties are weak so interests work directly on government 3 President Congress Governor State Legislatures Courts Government Agencies animalagriculture.org
1. Economic developments that have created new interests and redefined old ones Subsistence farming vs. cash crops Craftspeople vs. mass production 2. Government policies War creates veterans groups Professional societies and state licenses 4 worldcarfans.com owatonnavfw.com
3. Changing social circumstances Anti-slavery organizations Civil Rights organizations 4. Government activities Corporate and labor policies Environmental policies 5 applaudablog.com en.wikipedia.org
Institutional Interests: individuals or organizations representing other organizations U.S. Chamber of Commerce Membership Interests: Individuals who engage in political or civil action NAACP - NRA 6 greenspotblog.com meacswacsports.blogspot.com
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Solidary incentives— people join for a sense of pleasure, status, or companionship PTA, League of Women Voters – can have an impact on the local and national level Material incentives— people join to receive money, things, services AARP, Farm Bureaus 8 textalibrarian.com belleflora.wordpress.com
Purposive incentives—recruit members to attain a goal or purpose of the organization Two Types Ideological interest groups – appeal to people’s political convictions or principles Pro-Choice, Anti-Abortion Public –Interest Lobby- organization whose goals will primarily satisfy non- members Ralph Nader, Greenpeace 9 opensecrets.org medcitynews.com
Social movement: a widely shared demand for change in the social or political order, either liberal or conservative Examples include the environmental and feminist movements Unions continued activism after their social movement died, but sustaining membership is difficult Scandal, dramatic activity, strong leader 10 ha-ka.dk
Foundation grants ◦ One study found that 1/3 of public interest lobbying groups received more than half of all their funds from foundation grants 11 bcfamily.ca standupforamerica.wordpress.com
Federal grants and contracts ◦ Expansion of federal grants in1960s and 1970s benefited interest groups; cutbacks in between 1980 and 2010 have hurt them 12 seeklogo.com The Eli Home provides shelters for abused children and their mothers as well as permanent shared housing. (Anaheim, CA) fiskeroforangecounty. com
◦ President Bush and President Obama – Faith Based Initiatives is a federal program that seeks to vastly expand opportunities for religious organizations and faith-based institutions to receive federal ◦ social service grants. ◦ Under this initiative, for the first time, houses of worship and ◦ other pervasively sectarian ◦ Institutions are eligible for billions of taxpayer dollars atcmag.com
Direct mail: through the use of computers, mail is sent directly to a specialized audience But this approach is also expensive—it must generate checks from at least 2 percent of the people contacted 14 smg2020.com
Those who are more affluent are more likely to join and be active Business/professional groups are more numerous and better financed than those representing minorities, consumers, or the disadvantaged 15 lowdensitylifestyle.com mbklaw.com
Elites have input in the political system but do not control who eventually wins or loses on particular issues Business groups are often divided among themselves 16 cleveland.com mustangaccessories.net
Supplying credible information is the single most important tactic of interest groups Insider strategy: face- to-face contact between lobbyist and member or Hill staff 17 dclobbyist.yolasite.com
Outsider strategy: grassroots mobilization of the public Political Cues – signal to a legislator how an issue fits into their political views or party agenda 18 photoshelter.com
Lobbyists’ key targets: the undecided legislator or bureaucrat Some groups attack their likely allies to embarrass them Many public interest groups do better when the government is hostile 19 stop-obama.org
PAC: a committee set up to raise and spend money on campaigns and candidates Money is one of the least effective way to influence politicians 20 opensecrets.org wisconsingunowners.org
There is no systematic evidence that PAC money influences votes in Congress Ideological PACs raise more money, but raising the money also consumes it, so less is available to give to campaigns and candidates 21 opensecrets.org
Unions (Democrats) and business/professional organizations (Republicans) give the most PAC money Incumbents get the most PAC money Most Congressional members vote in line with their ideology and with their constituents 22
When an issue is of little concern to voters and ideology provides little guidance, there is a slight correlation between PAC contributions and votes PAC money may influence politics in other ways, like access or committee actions 23
Federal government workers leave to take more lucrative positions in private industry (lobbying, consulting, executive positions) This may give private interests a way to improperly influence government decisions 24 barefootfloor.com
Tax code; nonprofits lose tax-exempt status if a “substantial part” of their activities involve lobbying Campaign-finance laws limit donations by individual PACs – Candidates and Parties 25
The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 passed in 1978 in the wake of the Watergate Scandal that sets financial disclosure requirements for public officials and restrictions on former government employees' lobbying activities. The Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 strengthens public disclosure requirements concerning lobbying activity and funding, places more restrictions on gifts for members of Congress and their staff, and provides for mandatory disclosure of earmarks in expenditure bills. 26
“Ambition must be made to counteract ambition. “ 27