DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

AND

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

POSC 105

INTEREST GROUP POLITICS



  1. TODAY:
    1. Levels and types of decisions
    2. Interest group politics


  2. LEVELS OF DECISION MAKING:
    1. Policy categories
      1. Trunk: these policies determine a nation's political and economic agendas or a significant portion of them.
        1. Affect the allocation of public resources.
        2. Limit or predetermine range of choices
        3. Subject of long-term discussion and policy making.
        4. Examples:
          1. Balanced budget
          2. Containment
      2. Branch and twig decisions:
        1. Implement trunk decisions.
        2. Examples:
          1. Types of weapons systems.
      3. Other categorization
        1. "Neutral distributive"
          1. Allocates material and symbolic rewards
        2. Re-distributive:
          1. Takes from one group and gives to another.
    2. Generalizations:
      1. Corruption involves middle-level distributive decisions.
      2. Trunk decision made behind the scenes or "invisibly"


  3. INTEREST GROUP POLITICS:
    1. To understand American government, especially the "middle levels" of power one needs to appreciate the central role interest groups play in the political process.
    2. Interest groups compared to political parties:
      1. Do not try to run government as a whole, only to protect the interests of their members.
      2. Private, not public, bodies and hence not accountable in the same way parties are.
      3. Do not run their own candidates for office.
    3. Generalizations:
      1. Most visible politics involves interest group conflict
      2. Interest group politics involves mostly "branch and twig" decisions and mid-range distributive policies.
    4. The American way of politics: interest group conflict or pluralism
      1. The belief in the legitimacy of groups: ours is a nation that places great value on interest groups.
      2. Main "actors" or players are organized groups, not individuals or unified, organized political parties.
      3. Usually, several sets of groups on each side of an issue.
      4. Groups struggle in many arenas for favorable outcomes, decisions.
      5. Groups mobilize resources such as money, skills, organization, prestige.
      6. Groups participate in policy development and especially implementation.
      7. Tools: contact and access and favors (lobbying), public relations, "knowledge," election contributions
      8. On paper the "system" remain relatively stable, "balanced," open, representative.


  4. INTEREST GROUP POLITICS-WHO WINS:
    1. Representation of the interest of their members.
    2. Pluralism: groups are part of society's system of checks and balances.
      1. Madison-style democracy: an extended republic of groups pursuing selfish interest leads to balance and compromise.
    3. They provide the political system with information and services.
      1. Lobbying is an information service, not vote buying.
    4. Private government: many government programs are administered by private groups. Examples: job training, loans, housing, schools, jails.
      1. A great deal of legislation is written by private groups.


  5. INTEREST GROUP POLITICS-WHO LOSES:
    1. Certain segments of society are not well represented by groups
      1. Social and economic inequality disadvantage various segments of society.
      2. Others are not represented, or are not represented effectively, by groups.
        1. Public interest groups
    2. Privatization and conflicts of interest
      1. Examples: regulation and conflicts of interest
        1. See the article on the web site "Delaware and Banking Laws."
        2. Atomic energy, Dow Chemical
    3. Campaign spending and PACs.


  6. NEXT TIME:
    1. Second test: see web site for sample questions and review session.

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