Interest Groups1. What is the purpose of interest groups?

Interest Group Categories Economic interest groups

• Corporations• Business associations (a.k.a. industry groups)• Labor unions• Professional organizations

Equal opportunity interest groups Public interest or single-issue groups

Interest Group Categories Associated Builders and

Contractors (ABC) is a trade association representing the interests of construction companies.

2a. What category ofinterest group is this?

Interest Group Categories Public Citizen is a

consumer advocacy group that works to protect Americans from corporate abuses, such as unsafe products and rampant commercialism.

2b. What category ofinterest

group is this?

Interest Group Categories The Human Rights

Campaign works to achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality.

2c. What category ofinterest group is this?

Interest Group Categories Earth Justice works to

preserve wildlife and wilderness, ensure a toxic-free environment, and promote clean energy over fossil fuels to combat global warming.

2d. What category of interest group

isthis?

Interest Group Categories The American Council of

Life Insurers (ACLI) represents 300 life insurance companies.

2e. What category of

interest group is this?

Interest Group Categories The National Council of

La Raza – the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States – works to improve opportunities for Hispanic Americans.

2f. What category of interest group is

this?

Interest Group Categories The United Farm

Workers of America (UFW) represents agricultural laborers who work for wages.

2g. What category of interest group is

this?

Interest Group Categories The American Medical

Association (AMA) is the largest association of physicians and medical students in the United States.

2h. What category ofinterest group is

this?

Interest Group Categories The American Civil

Liberties Union advocates on behalf of Americans’ civil liberties, such as free speech, voting rights, and freedom of religion.

2i. What category of interest group is this?

Interest Group Categories The American Institute of

Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) represents accountants who work in business and industry, public practice, government, education, and other fields.

2j. What category of interest group is this?

Interest Group Activities# 1 Campaign finance

Interest Group Activities#2 Direct lobbying

– Gifts, travel– Lobbying

Interest Group Activities#3 Indirect lobbying

– Issue advocacy (TV and radio ads, print advertisements, etc.)

– Grassroots mobilization (petitions, letters to elected officials, etc.)

– Legislative scorecards

Interest Group Activities#4 Litigation

Interest Group Activities The CEO of The Boeing Company “bundles”

together campaign contributions from several dozen executives at the company for a member of the House of Representatives.

3. What category of interest group activity is

this?

Interest Group Activities A bill that would raise the gasoline excise tax is

being considered by the Senate Ways and Means Committee. Airlines for America, an industry group representing major airline companies, hires a team of lobbyists to pressure committee members to vote to reject the bill.

4. What category of interest group activity is this?

Interest Group Activities5. What category of interest group spends

the most on direct lobbying?

Interest Group Activities Most economic interest group PACs tend to

contribute relatively evenly to Republican and Democratic lawmakers.

6. What kind of candidate do economic interest group PACs tend to favor? Why do you think that is?

Interest Group Activities7. Name one kind of economic interest group that tends to contribute campaign funds to candidates in the Democratic party. Why do you believe they do this?

Interest Group Activities8. Name one kind of single-issue group that tends to contribute campaign funds to

candidates in the Democratic party.

Interest Group Activities9. Name one kind of single-issue group that tends to contribute campaign funds to

candidates in the Republican party. Why do you believe they do this?

10. Many congresspersons and congressional staff

members are employed as lobbyists when they leave Congress. What do you call this

phenomenon?

11. Why are many political observers critical of this trend?

Interest Group Activities

Interest Group Activities12. What is one way that interest groups

try to influence a U.S. Supreme Court decision?

Interest Group Activities13. Identify one major restriction on direct

lobbying enacted in the last twenty years.

14. Identify three features of the U.S. Constitution that protect

interest group activity.

Interest Group Activities