Interest Groups and Lobbyists

Interest Groups and Lobbyists Interest Groups – organizations dedicated to a political goal or goals Examples: NAACP, AMA, Sierra Club Interest groups engage in lobbying. Origin: people would wait in the lobby of the Capitol trying to get to legislators as they came and went. Some lobbyists make huge salaries; many are former legislators; their experience and friends in Congress make them effective.

Lobbyists work for special interest groups, which largely fall into the following categories. Economic Groups - promotes their members' economic interests such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, United Auto Workers; professional organizations like the American Bar Association and the AMA American Medical Association -These groups typically have strong connections to legislators, are very well funded, have many constituents, and alot of influence. They are the most powerful interest groups. Public Interest Groups - non-profit organizations; concerned with public policy; usually promote safer products and more information being released to consumers; one of the largest is Public Citizen, led by Ralph Nader; Sierra Club - preservation of wildlife; Christian Coalition -Single Interest groups such as MADD and the NRA fall into this category. These constituents are likely to use a single issue to judge a candidate.

Interest Groups in Government -They use a variety of methods to influence and persuade Congress, the president, and the judiciary. -Direct Lobbying - meeting face to face with government officials, present information about their issues, and try to convince officials to support the issues that benefit them. Some young Congressmen depend on these groups for information, so that they can learn about bills. -Testifying before Congress - Provide expert witnesses at committee hearings -Socializing - organize social events to meet and form relationships with government officials -Political Donations - financial support for candidates and parties who support their issues; they form PACS and super PACS (political action committees to raise money) -Endorsements - support a specific candidate; some use voting records of legislators to determine support -Court Action - form class action suits to protect their interests; amicus curiae (friend of the court) briefs to provide information to the court even when they are not involved in the lawsuit. -Rally membership - grassroots campaigning, getting members to contact legislators to support their interests; demonstrations, rallies -Propaganda - Advertising to promote their views and issues;

Lobbying restrictions -There are laws to limit lobbying, but first amendment rights must be protected. -1946 Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act - allows government to monitor lobbyists and their special interest groups and requiring them to register with the government and release their salaries, expenses and other information. -regulate certain activities in lobbying for a specific period of time for former government officials. This is to restrict influence peddling- using a personal connection with a legislator to advance your interests. Former legislators cannot directly lobby for one year but can immediately contact the executive branch. How could this still cause problems? -Many former government officials become lobbyists and consultants. -Executive officials must wait five years to become lobbyists. Buckley v. Valeo (1976) established these rules.

PACS -PACs provide a way for special interest groups to support a candidate financially without breaking laws about campaign contributions. -2010 Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission - Supreme Court changed finance rules and lessened restrictions on how much money special interest groups could donate to a campaign right before an election; concluded that it was a First Amendment Right to support candidates for Congress and the President.

PACS 1974 - Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) allowed Political Action Committees to come together and raise campaign funds. They must raise money from their members and other supporters and not just take it from their treasuries. 2002 - Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) also known as McCain-Feingold Act - regulated PAC donations by prohibiting unregulated contributions to political parties and limited the corporate and union money that could be used for advertising. -PACS who do not directly affiliate themselves with a party or candidate can do what they wish with their money; These unlimited PACS are known as super PACS; usually funded by really people 527 Groups -Named after a tax code; are not regulated by the FEC (Federal Election Commission); they are classified as political organizations but are not registered as political committees, which are subject to contribution limits; they are considered advocacy groups, not candidate advocacy groups; Citizens United is one example. They may also use soft money.

Hard Money and Soft Money Hard Money - highly regulated contributions to candidates Soft Money - unregulated, unlimited contributions to political parties for general party-building activities such as "Vote Democrat" or get your voter I.D. efforts; some uses of soft money were restricted by McCain-Feingold Act.