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Government By the People

Twenty-sixth Edition, 2018 Elections and Updates Edition

Chapter 5

Interest Groups

5.1 The Reasons Interest Groups Endure and the “Mischiefs of Faction” They Produce (Structure)

A Nation of Interests

Attracting Members

Social Movements

Mischiefs of Faction

A Nation of Interests

Interest groups

Demographic distinctions

Ideology/policy preferences

“Special interests”

Interest groups can coalesce around any shared concern or goal. Some groups are based on demographic characteristics such as race, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, occupation, or sexual orientation. Other groups form around shared policy goals, such as opposition to gun control or abortion.

The term “special interest” is usually used to describe a group whose goals are contrary to the public interest. But what is the public interest? Groups with widely divergent policy goals all claim that they are in accord with the public interest.

Attracting Members

People form groups because of common interests

Three types of incentives to join groups

Material

Solidary

Purposive

Material incentives provide tangible, sometimes monetary, rewards. Solidary incentives give people a sense of belonging for joining groups, while purposive incentives refer to the benefits people get from joining groups whose goals align with their political views and concerns.

Social Movements

Interest groups often begin as social movements

Examples include civil rights, environmental causes, Tea Party

Bill of Rights protects social movements

A social movement consists of many people interested in a significant issue, idea, or concern who are willing to take action to support or oppose it.

The Tea Party formed in 2009 in opposition to the financial stimulus package and subsequently opposed health care reform. The group opposed the increasing scope of government.

The Bill of Rights protects movements, popular or unpopular, by upholding free assembly, free speech, and due process.

The Mischiefs of Faction

Factions are groups pursuing self-interest at the expense of the national interest

Founders designed government to limit factions

Separation of powers

Checks and balances

Bicameralism

Federalism

Pluralism

When a group of people share a common interest, they can form interest groups or even political parties to enact their goals into public policy. The founders called these groups “factions,” and they worried that majority factions might trample on the rights of minorities.

As he explained in Federalist No. 10, James Madison thought factions were inevitable. He felt that people were going to pursue their self-interest at the expense of the interests of others and of the community as a whole. Since factions can’t be prevented, Madison sought to limit their effects.

The Constitution separates governmental power into three branches, and each branch checks and balances the others. Terms of elective offices are staggered, so factions have to be around for a while if they hope to get their way.

Madison also counted on the existence of many factions competing with one another to limit their effects. This competition is called pluralism and it is the hallmark of the U.S. governing system. How well has pluralism worked? There is concern today that certain groups, such as corporations, unions, and wealthy individuals, have inordinate influence, preventing effective interest group competition.

5.2 Types of Interest Groups (Action)

Economic Interest Groups

Ideological or Single-Issue Interest Groups

Public Interest Groups

Foreign Policy Interest Groups

Public Sector Interest Groups

Other Interest Groups

Interest groups can be large or small, formal or informal. Some interest groups claim to represent people who are not members. For example, the American Automobile Association claims to represent all motorists, even those who do not pay to join. In this section we will examine how we categorize interest groups.

Economic Interest Groups (1 of 3)

Business

Large corporations

National Federation of Independent Businesses

Trade and Other Associations

Chamber of Commerce

National Association of Manufacturers

Because of the large number of economic interests, economic interest groups are the most numerous. These groups seek public policies that benefit themselves financially.

Large corporations are interest groups unto themselves. They use political contributions to get favorable public policies. Smaller businesses can band together to form interest groups, such as the National Federation of Independent Businesses.

Businesses of a single type also join together in trade associations, such as the National Association of Realtors. The broadest trade organization is the Chamber of Commerce.

Economic Interest Groups (2 of 3)

Labor

Unions represent 13 percent of U.S. workforce

Open shop versus closed shop

Free rider problem

Allied with Democratic Party

Opposed to free-trade deals

Laborers can form unions to represent their interests in areas such as wages, benefits, and working conditions. Unions began to form during the Industrial Revolution.

The U.S. has one of the lowest rates of unionization of industrialized countries, with only about 11% of the workforce unionized. The AFL-CIO represents about three-quarters of unionized workers. The proportion of workers who belong to unions has fallen as the nation has switched from a manufacturing to a service economy.

Union membership is optional in states with so-called open-shop laws. In states with closed-shop policies, membership is compulsory as a condition of employment to avoid the free rider problem, whereby workers gain the benefits secured by the union (such as higher wages and better benefits) without paying dues to the union.

Unions have strong communication channels with members, and typically endorse Democratic candidates, but they have been unable to stop Democratic presidents from signing free trade agreements.

Figure 5.1 Union Membership in the United States Compared to Other Countries

Source: Updated data available at https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=UN_DEN.

How might aspects of American culture and ideology help explain the relatively low unionization of the American workforce? Do you know why rates of unionization are even lower in France?

FIGURE 5.2 Percent of Work Force That Is Unionized

Source: Troy and Sheflin (1985), Appendix A, 1929-72; Hirsch and Macpherson, 1973-2006; Barry T. Hirsch and David A. Macpherson

(2016), Union Membership, Coverage, Density, and Employment Among Private Sector Workers, 1973-2015.

How can you explain the steady upward growth of the labor force without a comparable growth in the unionized labor force?

Economic Interest Groups (3 of 3)

Professional Associations

American Medical Association

American Bar Association

Unions are associated with blue-collar workers, but white-collar workers also have professional organizations, such as the American Bar Association for lawyers and the American Medical Association for doctors. Most professions are regulated and licensed at the state level, so these associations often focus their lobbying efforts on state governments. Professional associations, like all economic interest groups, are large donors to political campaigns.

Ideological and Single-Issue Interest Groups

Members share common viewpoint

Single-issue groups

Unwilling to compromise

Pro-choice v. pro-life is an example

National Rifle Association (NRA)

One of the largest, most powerful interest groups

Some interest groups focus on a single policy issue, such as abortion, gun control, or immigration. Members of single-issue groups are often ideologically motivated and unwilling to compromise on the public policies they are pursuing. With regard to abortion, both pro- and anti-choice groups are examples of single-issue groups.

Public Interest Groups

Claim to represent public interest

From social movements of the 1960s

Common Cause

Public Interest Research Groups (PIRGs)

Ralph Nader

Environmental and consumer protection

Emerging from the social movements of the 1960s is a type of group that claims to represent the public interest. Common Cause is an example of a public interest group. They publish reports on current issues and seek to make the political process more open and inclusive.

Founded by consumer activist Ralph Nader in the 1970s, public interest research groups, or PIRGS, as they are known, try to represent consumer interests in public policy.

Why is it harder for consumers to band together to form interest groups than, say, lawyers or ranchers?

Foreign Policy Interest Groups

Council on Foreign Relations

Israel-Arab relations subject of many groups

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs)

Red Cross

Save the Children

The interest groups we’ve looked at so far try to influence domestic policies that affect their members or the public at large.

Some interest groups concern themselves with U.S. foreign policy. The Council on Foreign Relations is the most prestigious of these groups, but there are many groups that support or oppose free trade, or take stances on specific issues, such as China’s relations with Tibet or the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Another type of interest group is the nongovernmental organization, or NGO. NGOs are usually concerned about a global issue such as human rights or the environment. They work to raise public awareness and affect government policies. Examples of major NGOs include Boys and Girls Clubs of America, CARE, Red Cross, Save the Children, and the Humane Society of the United States.

Public Sector and Other Interest Groups

Governments are interest groups

National Governors Association

National League of Cities

Government employees

National Education Association (NEA)

Other interest groups

League of Women Voters

National Organization of Women

Governments constitute interest groups in and of themselves. Cities lobby state and national governments, and states hire Washington lobbyists. All levels of government and types of official have a lobbying organization to represent their interests. Examples of these organizations are the National Governors Association and the National League of Cities.

Government employees also form a major interest group that is subdivided by profession. Public educators, for example, are members of the National Education Association, which functions as a professional association, labor union, and public sector interest group all in one. The NEA endorses political candidates and is 3.2 million members strong.

Women’s organizations, such as the League of Women Voters and the National Organization for Women, advocate for equal rights.

5.3 Characteristics and Power of Interest Groups (Action)

Who Are the Lobbyists?

Techniques for Exerting Influence

Who Are the Lobbyists? (1 of 4)

Lobbyists

Employed by interest groups

Seek to influence policy decisions

Revolving door

Former public servants

Issue networks

Lobbyists are, not surprisingly, often former public servants. Because they have connections, and know how the system works from the inside, they are sought after by lobbying firms. Since lobbying is a lucrative profession, some elected officials enter public office intending to serve only until they have enough experience to be snapped up by a lobbying firm. This career path is so common, it is known as the revolving door.

Issue networks are relationships among interest groups, congressional committees and subcommittees, and government agencies that share a common policy concern. These relationships may become so strong and mutually beneficial that they almost form a separate branch of government.

Who Are the Lobbyists? (2 of 4)

Techniques for Exerting Influence

Publicity, mass, media, and the Internet

Mass mailing/emailing

Direct contact with government

“Notice and comments period”

Litigation

Civil rights

Amicus curiae briefs

Because of the separation of powers, the U.S. government provides many access points for lobbyists. But many groups focus their lobbying efforts on the public as much as on government officials. They use the Internet, U.S. mail, signs, newspapers, leaflets, and every other available means of publicity to influence voters.

Businesses enjoy an advantage here because they have more money to spend on advertising. Groups increasingly rely upon the Internet, especially social media, to reach the public. The Internet has made civic participation easier. Organizing activities such as marches and rallies and petitions is facilitated by the Internet, and so is making donations.

Groups have traditionally relied on mass mail campaigns to reach individuals, and computers have made this means of communication faster and cheaper. Many groups rely on e-mail as well as U.S. mail, and have access to much more specific lists of recipients than in the past.

Before new regulations go into effect, they are published in the Federal Register, and the public is given a time to get in touch with the government agency responsible for implementing the regulation. Lobbyists use this opportunity to present written responses, draft alternative regulations, and speak at hearings on the proposed rules.

Sometimes groups will find elected official unsympathetic to their policy goals, as happened during the civil rights movement. In this situation, interest groups turn to the courts, as did the NAACP, where they often have more success in appealing for constitutional rights.

In addition to filing lawsuits, groups can file amicus curiae briefs in cases in which they are not a party. The arguments in these briefs are sometimes cited in judicial opinions. Interest groups file these “friend of the court” briefs quite often; 136 were filed in the recent health care reform case.

Who Are the Lobbyists? (3 of 4)

Protests

Demonstrations

Black Lives Matter

Contributions to Campaigns

Political Action Committees (PACs)

Super PACs

Section 501(c) groups

Another technique used by groups is protest. Groups hold demonstrations to show elected officials how much support their cause has, and how passionate that support is.

A recent example is the Black Lives Matter group. This group is concerned about the use of deadly force by police and more broadly racial profiling by police.

Nonprofit groups are limited in what political activities they can engage in legally, so they form separate political action committees, or PACs, that contribute money to political candidates. Super PACs are a new form of PAC that have no legal limits on the amount of money they can spend on supporting or opposing candidates.

In 2012 and 2016, Section 501(c) groups spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the presidential campaigns. Because donors to these groups are not disclosed they are attractive to some donors.

Who Are the Lobbyists? (4 of 4)

Candidate support/opposition

Often non-partisan

Endorsements

Scorecards

New political parties

Cooperative lobbying

Like-minded groups work together

Many groups are officially nonpartisan and contribute to both parties to be assured of a warmer reception for their lobbyists.

Over time, though, many groups find that their policy position is better represented by one party, and they contribute to that party accordingly.

Groups publicly endorse candidates and publish scorecards of candidates’ voting records on the issues that concern them.

Occasionally groups will form a political party to represent their interests, but the two-party system makes this method of influence largely ineffective today. Instead, groups are more likely to work through existing parties, as does the Tea Party, which is not a political party, but a faction within the Republican Party.

One exception is the Green Party, a political party formed by environmentalists. The Green Party fields candidates in national, state, and local elections but has been rightfully accused of splitting the vote, taking votes away from one of the major parties.

Like-minded groups sometimes form cooperative groups to coordinate their efforts and increase their influence.

5.4 What Explains Interest Group Success? (Impact)

Size and Resources

Cohesiveness

Leadership

Helping Those They Represent

Funding Campaigns

Size and Resources

Size matters

Membership benefits

So does spread

Concentration versus dispersal

Resources matter, too

Money

Volunteers

Expertise

Reputation

The more members an organization has, the more influence it has with politicians. To increase membership, groups often provide incentives to join, such as discounts on goods and services, free merchandise with the group’s logo, magazines just for members, and member events. Governments overcome the free rider problem through taxes, but private organizations cannot usually be as coercive and must rely upon incentives.

Some groups are concentrated geographically, such as automakers in Michigan and Cuban Americans in Florida. Other groups, such as the American Medical Association, have members in virtually every Congressional district in the country. In general, dispersal enhances a group’s influence but concentration certainly helps at the state and local level—and at the national level if the concentration is in a key battleground state.

The greater a group’s resources—such as money, volunteers, expertise, and reputation—the broader its reach into centers of power. A national group with active chapters in every state can lobby more government officials at all levels than a smaller one.

Cohesiveness and Leadership

Types of members

Formal leaders

Actively involved members

Members in name only

Single-issue groups = stronger cohesion

Planned Parenthood

Leadership

Tricky when group is diverse

There are three types of members in most mass-membership organizations. The first type comprises the full-time leadership of the organization. These people rely on the second type of member, people who are intensely involved with the organization, organizing meetings and activities. The last type of member is the most numerous—members who pay dues but don’t otherwise participate in the organization’s activities.

As you might expect, single-issue groups have stronger cohesion than groups with more general aims. For example, Planned Parenthood has a strong and well-organized national network, and its goals are well understood by its supporters.

For groups that are more diverse, such as a business organization that has both large chain stores and small shops as members, the leadership must tread carefully to balance the interests of all its members and not alienate any segments. Even within factions there can be factions.

Helping Those They Represent

How interest groups influence elected officials

Campaign contributions

Volunteers for campaign activity

Information

Political versus substantive

To members of Congress, the single most important thing lobbyists provide is money for their next reelection campaign. Interest groups can also offer volunteers for campaign activity.

In addition, elected officials value interest groups because lobbyists provide two important types of information: 1) political information, including such matters as who supports or opposes legislation, including the executive

branch, and how strongly they feel about it, and 2) substantive information, such as the impact of proposed laws, which may not be available from any other source.

Funding Campaigns (1 of 4)

Political Action Committees (PACs)

Give money to politicians

Persuade politicians to act or vote in a certain way

Dominated by corporations and trade associations

PACs are the political arm of interest groups. They are allowed to contribute funds to political parties and candidates for public office. The goal of these political contributions is to put candidates in office who support policies that the interest group favors and then influence how they act and vote.

FIGURE 5.3 Total PAC Contributions to Candidates for U.S. Congress, 1975-2014 (Millions of Dollars)

Source: Harold W. Stanley and Richard G. Niemi, Vital Statistics on American Politics 2009–2010 (CQ Press), p. 92; and Federal Election

Commission, “2011–2014 Election Cycle Data Summaries through 12/31/14,” http://www.fec.gov/press/summaries/2014/tables/pac/

PAC2_2014_24m.pdf.

These contributions are listed in millions of dollars. What is the overall trend for PAC contributions during this time period?

Funding Campaigns (2 of 4)

Independent expenditures

Independent of party or candidate

Unlimited

Subject to disclosure requirements

Super PACs

Citizens United v. FEC (2010)

Groups or individuals can make unlimited independent campaign expenditures—that is, expenditures that aren’t contributed to a candidate or party. The Supreme Court declared limits on independent expenditures to be unconstitutional in 1976. In addition to their PAC contributions, groups spend millions on independent expenditures. Although this spending is unlimited, it must be disclosed to the Federal Election Commission.

A new kind of PAC, the Super PAC, came into existence in 2010 after the Supreme Court declared limits on campaign spending by corporations to be a violation of free speech rights. The case of Citizens United v. FEC opened up vast new spending possibilities for corporations, unions, and other well-funded interest groups.

Elected officials sometimes form their own PACs, called leadership PACs, to spend money on favored candidates and bolster their leadership aspirations.

National Rifle Association

Attendees at the 2015 National Rifle Association (NRA) Annual Meeting in Nashville, Tennessee. The event was attended by top Republican contenders for the presidency.

The NRA is very active in making independent expenditures.

TABLE 5.2 Candidate and Allied Super PAC Spending in 2012 Presidential Election

Candidate/Supporting Super PAC	Candidate Spending	Super PAC Spending
Paul/Endorse Liberty	$39,038,495	$3,578,240
Gingrich/Winning Our Future	$24,312,428	$17,002,762
Santorum/Red White & Blue Fund	$22,782,771	$7,529,554
Huntsman/Our Destiny PAC	$8,913,912	$2,804,234
Romney/Restore Our Future	$483,073,470	$142,097,336
Romney/American Crossroads	--	$104,746,670
Obama/Priorities USA Action	$737,507,846	$65,205,743

Super PACs can spend huge amounts of money.

Funding Campaigns (3 of 4)

How PACs invest their money

Incumbents

Committee chairs

Party leadership

In the 2014 election cycle, incumbent congressional candidates raised more than 11 dollars from PACs for each one dollar raised from PACs by challengers.

PACs target their contributions to officials in leadership positions, such as committee chairs and party leaders, because they wield the most influence in the legislature.

FIGURE 5.4 PAC Contributions to Congressional Candidates, 1996-2014 (Millions of Dollars)

Source: Federal Election Commission, “PAC Contributions to Candidates,” http://www.fec.gov/press/press_archives.shtml and

http://www.fec.gov/press/summaries/2014/tables/pac/PAC2_2014_24m.pdf and http://www.fec.gov/press/summaries/2002/tables/

congressional/ConCand1_2002_24m.pdf

Over time, how has the distribution of PAC money changed? Why do PACs contribute so disproportionately to incumbents?

Funding Campaigns (4 of 4)

Mobilizing employees and members

Persuading members how to vote

Other modes of electioneering

Soft money

Issue ads

Campaigning through other groups

Issue advocacy

Unions, corporations, ideological groups

Interest groups use various channels of communication, such as the telephone, e-mail, and the U.S. mail, to persuade their members to vote their way in upcoming elections.

Interest groups have also used so-called soft money contributions to political parties as a way to bypass limits on the amount of contributions they can make to specific candidates. We will discuss soft money more in the next chapter.

Recently, interest groups have started spending money directly on advertising rather than contributing to candidates or parties. This direct method of communication with voters allows them to sidestep disclosure regulations. The Citizens United decision effectively removed all limits on how much groups can spend on issue ads that mention candidates, so they are going to be a major feature of electioneering for the foreseeable future.

Interest groups have always looked for ways to get around disclosure requirements. Reformers and the Supreme Court have tried to link disclosure to use of certain phrases such as “vote for” or “vote against,” but it has been easy for groups to avoid words that trigger disclosure requirements and still get their message across.

Campaign finance reform legislation and Court cases have changed the playing field for interest groups in recent years. As new rules were enacted, groups simply reorganized to find ways to circumvent them. The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, or BCRA, in 2004 was the largest piece of reform legislation, although it has been significantly weakened since.

5.5 Limiting the Mischiefs of Faction (Impact)

Influence of money in campaigns is debatable

What would Madison think?

Checking the power interest groups

Importance of disclosure

Although a candidate may receive a great amount of interest group money, only

a fraction of that total comes from any single group. It is also debatable how much

campaign contributions affect elections, and there is no guarantee that money produces a payoff in legislation.

At the beginning of the chapter, we discussed James Madison and his great fear of the “mischief of factions.” If Madison were to return to see the state of factions and their mischief today, he would doubtless be surprised by the involvement of lobbyists and special interest groups in the political process.

Many people are alarmed by the policy influence of single-issue groups and well-funded industry groups. Some express concern that interests are not represented equally. It’s easier, for example, for a single wealthy industry to lobby for lower water pollution standards than for poor residents who live near a polluted river to lobby for higher pollution standards.

When lawmakers try to appease multiple groups with opposing policy views, it can lead to inefficient, incoherent, or delayed policies. Also, the tendency for groups to back incumbents gives them a tremendous advantage in elections.

There have been some weak legislative attempts to restrict lobbying and reform campaign financing, but the Court has eased regulations on interest group activity, especially in the area of financial contributions. The Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 requires candidates to disclose who their donors are, but Super PACs can get around this requirement easily.

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