Chapter 6: Interest Groups

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Chapter 6 Interest Groups
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Linkage Institutions

• Interest Groups are one of three main linkage
  institutions.
• Interest Groups
• Media
• Political Parties

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What is a L.I.?

• An entity that links the people to the
  govenrment.

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What do interest groups do?

• express group members preferences to policy
  members
• Convey policy information to group memebers
• raise and spend money to advocate for the
  interest of the group with policymakers.
• Inform policy makers of issues

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How do they do this?

• Letterwriting
• Campaign activities
• Lobbying
• Grass roots organizations
• Litigation
• Media campaigns
• Disseminating information to the public about
  government affairs.

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Lobbying

• Lobbyists inform members of Congress on certain
  issues, what people want, and provide money for
  upcoming elections.

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PACS

• Political Action Committees
• Parts of the interest groups that raise money to
  give to candidates.

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FEC

• In charge of monitoring money.
• Allowed for PACS to give unlimited amounts of
  money soft money.

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FECA

• Federal Elections Campaign Act
• 1971 cannot say vote for or vote against
  (issue advocacy) 1971
• Groups instead bash or promote candidates
  without those words.

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BCRA

• Bipartisan Campagin reform act--McCain Feingold
  Bill
• Limited ads 60 days before general election, and
  30 days before a primary.

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BCRA continued.

• Bans corporations and unions from giving soft
  money.
• BCRA does not regulate what groups can do by
  phone, mail or in person.

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Money limitations

• PACS 5000 per election
• PACS 10,000 per election cycle (primary and
  general elctions)
• 4,000 per individual

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Soft Money

• Political Parties got around this through the use
  of soft money

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K Street

• Street in Washington D.C. filled with think
  tanks, interest/advocacy groups and lobbying
  firms.

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Citizens United vs. FEC

• Landmark case that will not be updated on the
  AP exam, so stick with the old!!!!!!
• Says corporations are people, cannot prohibit
  free speech before elections.

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Hillary the Movie

• Citizens United wanted to air before elections.
  
• BCRA/McCain Feingold says no
• Supreme Court says yes cannot limit free speech
  of citizens or their arms for communication.

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Iron Triangles

• A mutually dependent relationship among interest
  groups, congressional committees and
  subcommittees and government agencies that share
  a common policy concern.

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Revolving Door

• Employment cycle in which individuals who work
  for governmental agencies regulating interests
  eventually end up working for interest groups or
  businesses with the same policy concern.

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