Chapter 9 Interest Groups Organizing for Influence

Chapter 9 Interest Groups: Organizing for Influence Chapter Outline I. The Interest-Group System A. Economic Groups B. Citizens’ Groups C. The Organizational Edge: Economic Groups vs. Citizens’ Groups 1. Unequal Access to Resources 2. The Advantages and Disadvantages of Size II. Inside Lobbying: Seeking Influence through Official Contacts A. Acquiring Access to Officials 1. Lobbying Congress 2. Lobbying the Executive 3. Lobbying the Courts B. Webs of Influence: Groups in the Policy Process 1. Iron Triangles 2. Issue Networks III. Outside Lobbying: Seeking Influence through Public Pressure A. Constituency Advocacy: Grassroots Lobbying B. Electoral Action: Votes and PAC Money IV. The Group System: Indispensable but Biased A. The Contribution of Groups to Self-Government: Pluralism B. Flaws in Pluralism: Interest-Group Liberalism and Economic Bias C. A Madisonian Dilemma Learning Objectives Having read the chapter, you should be able to do each of the following: 1. Explain what an interest group is and how these groups differ from a political party. 2. Discuss the different types of interest groups and their constituencies, and compare and contrast the organizational advantages and disadvantages of economic and citizens’ groups. 3. Define lobbying and explain its objective; list the tactics employed by interest groups in the lobbying process. 4. Compare and contrast the processes of inside and outside lobbying, their targets in the power structure, and the circumstances in which either are most effective. 5. Discuss the difference between iron triangles and issue networks and the prevalence of each today. 6. Discuss the activities of political action committees and their influence on the election process. 1 7. Explain pluralist theory and interest-group liberalism. Discuss the major weaknesses of the pluralist argument. 8. Discuss the conflict between the advocacy of self-interest as the basic prerequisite for a free society and the government’s responsibility to protect and preserve the public interest (the Madisonian dilemma). Also, explain how James Madison’s constitutional system of checks and balances resulted in an increase of special interest influence. Chapter Summary A political interest group is composed of a set of individuals organized to promote a shared concern. Most interest groups owe their existence to factors other than politics. These groups form for economic reasons, such as the pursuit of profit, and maintain themselves by making profits (in the case of corporations) or by providing their members with private goods, such as jobs and wages. Economic groups include corporations, trade associations, labor unions, farm organizations, and professional associations. Collectively, economic groups are by far the largest set of organized interests. The group system tends to favor interests that are already economically and socially advantaged. Citizens’ groups do not have the same organizational advantages as economic groups. They depend on voluntary contributions from potential members, who may lack interest and resources or who recognize that they will get the collective good from a group’s activity even if they do not participate (the free-rider problem). Citizens’ groups include public-interest, single-issue, and ideological groups. Their numbers have increased dramatically since the 1960s despite their organizational problems. Organized interests seek influence largely by lobbying public officials and contributing to election campaigns. Using an inside strategy, lobbyists develop direct contacts with legislators, government bureaucrats, and members of the judiciary in order to persuade them to accept the group’s perspective on policy. Groups also use an outside strategy, seeking to mobilize public support for their goals. This strategy relies in part on grassroots lobbying—encouraging group members and the public to communicate their policy views to officials. Outside lobbying also includes efforts to elect officeholders who will support group aims. Through political action committees (PACs), organized groups now provide nearly a third of all contributions received by congressional candidates. The policies that emerge from the group system bring benefits to many of society’s interests and often serve the collective interest as well. But when groups can essentially dictate policies, the common good is rarely served. The majority’s interest is subordinated to group (minority) interests. In most instances, the minority consists of individuals who already enjoy a substantial share of society’s benefits. 2 Focus and Main Points The author focuses on interest groups and the degree to which various interests in American society are represented by organized groups. The chapter begins with a delineation between economic and citizens’ groups, and offers an explanation for differences in the degree to which various interests are organized. The chapter then explores the lobbying process by which interest groups seek to achieve their policy goals, and evaluates its impact on national policy. The differences between inside and outside lobbying are examined, along with the various forms of activity each entails. The chapter concludes with a discussion of how the group system is simultaneously indispensable and flawed. The main points are as follows: • Although nearly all interests in American society are organized to some degree, those associated with economic activity, particularly business enterprises, are by far the most thoroughly organized. Their advantage rests on their superior financial resources and on the private goods (such as wages and jobs) they provide to those in the organization. • Groups that do not have economic activity as their primary function often have organizational difficulties. These groups pursue public or collective goods (such as a safer environment) that are available even to individuals who are not group members, so individuals may free ride, choosing not to pay the costs of membership. • Lobbying and electioneering are the traditional means by which groups communicate with and influence political leaders. Recent developments, including grassroots lobbying and PACs, have heightened interest groups’ influence. • The interest-group system over-represents business interests and fosters policies that serve a group’s interest more than the society’s broader interests. Thus, although groups are an essential part of the policy process, they also distort that process. Major Concepts single-issue politics The situation in which separate groups are organized around nearly every conceivable policy issue and press their demands and influence to the utmost. interest group Any organization that actively seeks to influence public policy economic groups Interest groups that are organized primarily for economic reasons but that engage in political activity in order to seek favorable policies from government. private (individual) good Benefits that a group (most often an economic group) can grant directly and exclusively to individual members of the group. 3 citizens’ (noneconomic) groups Organized interests formed by individuals drawn together by opportunities to promote a cause in which they believe but that does not provide them significant individual economic benefits. collective (public) goods Benefits that are offered by groups (usually citizens’ groups) as an incentive for membership but that are nondivisible (such as a clean environment) and therefore are available to nonmembers as well as members of the particular group. free-rider problem The situation in which the benefits offered by a group to its members are also available to nonmembers. The incentive to join the group and to promote its cause is reduced because nonmembers (free riders) receive the benefits (e.g., a cleaner environment) without having to pay any of the group’s costs. lobbying The process by which interest-group members or lobbyists attempt to influence public policy through contacts with public officials. inside lobbying Direct communication between organized interests and policymakers, which is based on the assumed value of close (“inside”) contacts with policymakers. iron triangle A small and informal but relatively stable group of well-positioned legislators, executives, and lobbyists who seek to promote policies beneficial to a particular interest. issue network An informal and relatively open network of public officials and lobbyists who have a common interest in a given area and who are brought together by a proposed policy in that area. Unlike an iron triangle, an issue network disbands after the issue is resolved. outside lobbying A form of lobbying in which an interest group seeks to use public pressure as a means of influencing officials. grassroots lobbying A form of lobbying designed to persuade officials that a group’s policy position has strong constituent support. political action committee (PAC) The organization through which an interest group raises and distributes funds for election purposes. By law, the funds must be raised through voluntary contributions. interest-group liberalism The tendency of public officials to support the policy demands of self-interested groups (as opposed to judging policy demands according to whether they serve a larger conception of “the public interest”). 4