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POL 3162
Introduction to American Politics
INTEREST GROUPS
SHANG E. HA
SOGANG UNIVERSITY
From Previous Class….
 Hard Money
 funds that can be used to help elect or defeat a specific candida
te
 donations to the primaries and general elections count separat
ely.
 Has limits (by the FEC)
 Soft Money
 Contributions that are not used to help a specific candidate (co
ntributions that can be used for voter mobilization or to promo
te a policy proposal or point of view as long as these efforts are
not tied to supporting or opposing a particular candidate)
 No limits
From Previous Class…
 A 527 organization can raise unlimited soft money from individuals or
corporations for voter mobilization and for issue advocacy, but these expen
ditures must not be coordinated with a candidate or a party (which means
that 527s cannot advocate the election or defeat of a particular candidate or
political party).
 A 501(c)(4) organization can raise unlimited soft money for voter mobil
ization and for issue advocacy, and does not have to disclose contributors.
But 501(c)(4)s cannot coordinate efforts with candidates or parties. Plus, at
least half of their activities must be non-political.
 Political action committee (PAC) is an interest group or a division of
an interest group that can raise money to contribute to campaigns or to
spend on ads in support of candidates. The amount of a PAC can receive
from each of its donors and the amount it can spend on federal campaigns
are strictly limited.
 “Super” PACs can spend unlimited amounts on voter mobilization and
issue advocacy (even from corporations and labor unions) and can support
or oppose specific candidates. But they cannot make contributions to candi
dates or coordinate efforts with candidates or parties.
Overview
 APT, Chapter 9
 What roles do interest groups play in a democracy?
 The logic of collective action
 What kind of strategies do interest groups
implement?
 How much power do interest group have in the US
politics? (a lot…..??)
The Interest Group Universe
 Interest groups – organizations of people who
share common political beliefs and aim to influence
policy by electioneering and lobbying
 Lobbying – efforts to influence public policy
through contact with public officials on behalf of an
interest group
The Interest Group Universe: National Rifle Association
 More than 4 million individuals
belong to the National Rifle
Association (NRA), one of the
most powerful interest groups
in America.
 At their national convention
(shown here), members can
attend a gun show and
meetings where they debate the
group’s goals and select leaders.
Types of Interest Groups

Economic group – a type of interest group that seeks
public policies that will provide monetary benefits to its
members

Citizen group – a type of interest group that seeks
changes in spending, regulations, or government programs
concerning a wide range of policies (also known as a public
interest group)

Single-issue group – a type of interest group that has a
narrowly focused goal and seeks change on a single topic,
government program, or piece of legislation
Types of Economic Groups
 Trade Associations


They are composed of companies in the same industry or business.
E.g., the National Beer Wholesalers Association.
 Labor unions

lobby for exclusive use of union labor on government contracts and
strongly support the Employee Free Choice Act, which would make it
easier to start unions in the private sector.
 Professional Organizations


They are composed of individuals who join in their capacity as
professionals (examples include doctors, lawyers, and teachers).
E.g., the American Medical Association.
Organizational Structures
Organizational Structures
Two different types of groups are centralized groups and
confederations


Large groups like the AARP and the NRA are centralized
• Headquarters typically in Washington, D.C.
• Members and offices throughout the country
• Lobbying decisions made by group leaders in headquarters
• These are efficient, but it’s tougher to know what members on
the ground want.
 Independent and local organizations are often structured as
confederations.
 An example is the National Automobile Dealers Association
(NADA).
 Often, local groups from across the nation band together to
form a larger group.
 Easy to read the local members, but hard to band together and
move in one direction toward a singular goal
Staff
 There are generally two types of staff that make up an
interest group:
1. Experts on policy areas
2. People who know people
Revolving Door – a term describing movement of
individuals from government positions to jobs with
interest groups or lobbying firms and vice versa.
•
Over 40 percent of representatives leaving the House or
Senate from 1998 to 2005 became lobbyists after
leaving.
K
Street – a shorthand term for referring to Washington
lobbyists as a group. It was derived from the name of the
street in Washington, D.C., where lobbying firms were
once concentrated.
Membership (Mass. vs Peak Organizations)
 Mass associations – interest groups that have a large number of
dues-paying individuals as members
 Peak associations – interest groups whose members are businesses
or other organizations rather than individuals
Mass associations are similar to AARP. For $16 in annual dues,
members get:
• Discounts on car rentals, insurance, hotels etc.
• Help doing their taxes
• Legislative program (This is arguably the most powerful
lobby in Washington and its own members barely know
about it!)

Peak associations are like BIPAC (Business-Industry Political Action
Committee):
• This is an association of several hundreds of businesses and trade
associations that aims to elect “pro-business individuals” to
Congress.
• An individual cannot directly join a peak association.

The Logic of Collective Action
 Free riding – the practice of relying on others to contribute to
a collective effort—while failing to participate on one’s own
behalf—and still benefiting from the group’s success

An example that students have often experienced is group work with a
common grade. If everyone gets the same grade, then the grade is a
public good but individual members have an incentive to slack off (free
ride) and hope that a more motivated student picks up the slack and
earns them all an A.
 Because governmental changes to policies affect everyone,
whether they worked for the change or not, it is hard to motivate
people to work for the change.
Overcoming Collective Action Problems

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 – a method of eliminating free riding by potential group
members by 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

Studies show that people join interest groups either out of a
sense of internal obligation or duty, external coercion, or
selective incentives.
Different Strategies for Different Groups
Inside strategies – tactics used by interest
groups within Washington, D.C., to achieve their
policy goals



Direct lobbying – attempts by interest group staff to
influence policy by speaking with elected officials or
bureaucrats
Outside strategies – tactics used by interest
groups outside Washington, D.C., to achieve their
policy goals
How Much Power Do Interest Groups Have?
The theory of bureaucratic capture says that
regulators become “captured” (persuaded by or
beholden to) the industries they are supposed to
regulate.


This idea would dictate that interest groups always have
the upper hand, because they have concentrated wealth at
stake, greater expertise on the issue at hand, and are
organized to marshal resources (people/money/expertise)
more quickly than the regulators or the people.
But….
The evidence does not support these fears. Interest groups are neither
omnipotent nor impotent; they get some of what they want, some of the
time.
It is important to recall four truths about interest groups:
1)
2)
3)
4)
They tend to lobby friends more than enemies and undecideds, and
they will moderate their demands in the face of resistance.
Complaints about the power of interest groups often come from the
losers of a political conflict.
Many interest groups will claim that they affected policy even if
their lobbying had no discernible effect on the outcome.
Interest groups are almost always active on both sides of a conflict
so if one or more groups are “successful” than there are likely one
or more “unsuccessful” groups on the other side.
Growth in Federal Spending and in
Lobbying: Total Spending
Top 20 Spenders on Lobbying, 1998–2012
Interest Groups:
Electioneering and Types of Organizations
Spending on Lobbying
What Determines When Interest Groups Succeed?
Success of Interest Groups
 Amount of Public Attention


Interest groups are more likely to succeed when their request attracts
little public attention
The National Turkey Federation: In 2002, they persuaded federal
bureaucrats to change federally funded school lunch program
regulations in a way that increased the allowable amount of turkey in
various meals.
 Level of Conflict

Disagreements between interest groups


The National Turkey Federation vs. The American Pork Producers/the
American Cattlemen
Differences between what a particular interest group wants and the
preferences of the general public
What about more complicated/conflictual issues?
 Gun control
 There was no consensus among members of Congress, interest
groups, or the American public about which policy changes
were needed
 Under these conditions, stalemate is the likely result
If policy change occurs at all, it is likely to reflect a complex
process of bargaining and compromise, with no groups getting
exactly what they want
 Generally speaking, no group is likely to get everything it wants
