Chapter 8:
Interest Groups
“We hear much of special interest groups.
Our concern must be for a special interest
group that has been too long neglected. It
knows no sectional boundaries or ethnic and
racial divisions, and it crosses political party
lines. It is made up of men and women who
raise our food, patrol our streets, man our
mines and our factories, teach our children,
keep our homes, and heal us when we are
sick-professionals, industrialists, shopkeepers,
clerks, cabbies, and truck drivers. They are, in
short, ‘We the people,’ this breed called
Americans.”
- Ronald Reagan
40th U.S. President
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The Interest Group Universe
Interest Group – organization of people who share common
values who seek to influence government policy.
Lobbying – efforts to influence policy through contact with
public officials on behalf of the interest group.
The “right to assemble” (U.S. Constitution) has been
interpreted by the Supreme Court to mean freely
allowing persons to join interest groups.
Interest groups can only form in
free societies with free markets.
- Contrast that idea with the following
Government use of “Madison Avenue”
Tactics/Propaganda Vs. the Marketplace
of Ideas (1:00 - 4:00)
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Organizational Structure
Types of Interest Groups
Citizen groups-seeks changes in spending, regulations, or government
programs concerning a wide range of policies: Groups like AARP, Sierra
Club, Family Research Council
Single-issue groups-seek change on a single topic, government program, or
piece of legislation: Groups like National Right to Life
Economic/Labor-seek public policy that will provide monetary benefits
Difference Between Public & Private Unions?
- Private Unions seek monetary benefits
from business.
- Public Unions seek monetary benefits
from government/tax payers.
- Federal Employees: Illegal to go on strike (1:28)
- State/Local Employees: Public Unions (start-3:25)
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Membership: Benefits and Incentives
Why do people join interest groups?
Solitary benefits – satisfaction derived from the
experience of working with like-minded people
Purposive benefits – satisfaction derived from the
experience of working toward a desired policy goal
Coercion –requiring participation, as in many labor unions
Selective incentives – benefits that are available only to
those who participate, such as member services
offered by interest groups
Leaders, Funding, Patrons, Members,
Staff and Message are Important to
Success!
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The Business of Lobbying
People lobby because they have a stake in what the government does.
1830-1889: National Groups Emerge.
Business interests have a larger role after Civil War,
and lobbyists emerge.
1890-1920: The Progressive Era
Explosion of interest groups - Growth of labor,
business organizations, and trade associations.
1960 – present: The Rise of the ‘Interest Group State’
Expansion of civil rights groups
Rise of conservative/religious groups (Christian Coalition)
Evolution of new business groups dedicated to lobbying
Corporate Freeloaders (5:45)
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman
Interest Group Strategies
Inside Strategies
Inside Strategies: contact with elected officials or bureaucrats. A group must
establish an office in DC or hire a lobbying firm to act on their behalf.
Activities include Direct lobbying, Drafting legislation and regulations,
Research, Testifying at Hearings, and Litigation
- filing amicus curiae briefs.
Regulating Lobbyists - Website: Registered Lobbyists
- The Ethics in Government Act of 1978: key provisions
address financial disclosure and employment after
government service.
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Interest Group Strategies
Outside Strategies
Grassroots lobbying: mass participation by group such
as protests, letter writing, calling Congress.
Astroturf lobbying: participation designed to look
spontaneous but is only a small group
Mobilizing Public Opinion: raise awareness in public
Electioneering: giving to impact elections (next slide)
Cultivating Media Contacts: attract media/free publicity
Occupy Movement (3 right) (start-3:04) Tea Party (2 below)
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Electioneering
501(c)(3) organization – donations are tax deductible, but organization cannot
engage in any political activities or lobbying. They can conduct
nonpartisan voter education programs and voter registration.
The following four are NOT Tax deductible
Political Action Committee(PAC) – Interest group that can raise money to
contribute directly to parties and candidates. But there are federal limits
on the amount PACs can raise and spend.
The following three CANNOT make contributions to candidates or coordinate
efforts with candidates or parties.
Super PAC – Can spend unlimited amounts to ‘support’ or oppose a candidate.
501(c)(4) – Can spend unlimited amounts, must disclose contributors, & half of
their activities must be nonpolitical.
527 Organization – Can spend unlimited amounts on ‘issue advocacy’ and
‘voter mobilization.’
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How Much Power Do Interest Groups Have?
Answer: Depends on “Public Attention”
and “Level of Conflict.”
Forbes U.S. News: ‘Occupy'-ers Seek
Dissolution of Democracy, End of Capitalism
Communism the Answer? (4:45)
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Margaret Thatcher
“Socialists cry ‘Power to
the people,’ and raise
their clenched fist as
they say it. We all know
what they really mean power over people,
power to the State.”
British Prime Minister
(1979- 1990)
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End of Government 2305
America - The Great Experiment
“Can Man Govern Himself?”
“We Hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created
equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable rights, that are among these are life, liberty, and
the pursuit of happiness.” -Declaration of Independence (1776)
"I am not discouraged by [a] little difficulty; nor have I any doubt
that the result of our experiment will be, that men are capable
of governing themselves without a master.”
-Thomas Jefferson (1787)
Self Government (:56) We The People (1:38)
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Thank you for your time and attention this
semester! As you move on to the next phase of
your journey, remember…
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out
how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of
deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs
to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is
marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives
valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again,
because there is no effort without error and shortcoming;
but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows
great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends
himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the
end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the
worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so
that his place shall never be with those cold and timid
souls who neither know victory nor defeat.
Teddy Roosevelt, 26th President
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