Chapter 6: Interest Groups

Linkage Institutions

• Interest Groups are one of three main linkage institutions.

• Interest Groups

• Media

• Political Parties

What is a L.I.?

• An entity that links the people to the govenrment.

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

How do they do this?

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

government affairs.

Lobbying

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

PACS

• Political Action Committees

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

FEC

• In charge of monitoring money.

• Allowed for PACS to give unlimited amounts of money: “soft money.”

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.

BCRA

• Bipartisan Campagin reform act--McCain Feingold Bill

• Limited ads 60 days before general election, and 30 days before a primary.

BCRA continued….

• Bans corporations and unions from giving soft money.

• BCRA does not regulate what groups can do by phone, mail or in person.

Money limitations

• PACS $5000 per election

• PACS $10,000 per election cycle (primary and general elctions)

• $4,000 per individual

Soft Money

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

K Street

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

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.

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.

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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