Guest Seminar
Interest groups and their lobbyists--meaning people seeking particular public policy decisions for themselves or their clients--have been part of the U.S. political system since the founding.
In Federalist 10, James Madison argued that "Liberty is to faction (meaning interest groups) what air is to fire." Believing that interest groups were divisive and fearing that they were inimical to the public good, though an inevitable part of human nature, Madison argued for a government based on checks and balances, which would control the "selfish" designs of groups. The existence of interest groups was thus a factor influencing the language of the Constitution. When Alexis de Tocqueville observed the U.S. republic in 1825, he wrote that Americans of all "conditions, minds, and ages, daily acquire a general taste for association and grow accustomed to the use of it."
During early presidencies, the White House was besieged with petitioners seeking special treatment. The most aggressive were those seeking pensions for military service, but the business community composed the single largest group influencing government policy by attempting to manipulate tariffs, patents, and appointments. Lavish parties were thrown by the mercantilists for Members of Congress and Cabinet officials. Money openly passed hands since no rules at the time prohibited such activity.
As the federal government has expanded its role and power, so also have interest groups. No bill moves through Congress today without interest group input. In fact, Members of Congress and Executive Branch officials often come from and return to interest groups.
Lobbyists are now subject to detailed (if somewhat imprecise) laws and regulations. They use a broad and increasingly sophisticated array of techniques including personal contacts, grass roots organizing, temporary alliances, divisions of labor, press and media strategies, and election contributions. Many lobbying campaigns are designed with the care and skill of battle plans.
Most citizens would probably agree that public interest should prevail over special interests. But there are no agreed upon guidelines for determining the public interest. One major challenge of the Information Age (including the use of Information Warfare), in which technology provides greater access and amplification for policy advocates, is to balance factional interests with the broader public interest.
Topic Objectives
- To understand how lobbyists influence the policy process.
- To assess how policymakers balance competing interests as they develop national policies.
- To evaluate possible reforms which would modify the influence of interest groups.
Questions for Consideration
- Is lobbying healthy or does it give an advantage to the economically privileged?
- Has money become the dominant influence in politics?
- Is it proper for the Executive Branch to lobby Congress? Is it proper for Congress to intervene in the Executive Branch with constituent requests?
- How effectively does the Department of Defense "lobby" Congress and how effective is the defense industry in lobbying both the Department and Congress?
- Are we approaching political gridlock in which special interests can prevent virtually any major new policy? Have we succeeded so well in avoiding any 'tyranny of the majority' that small groups can subvert broad public opinion and the public interest?
- Are we so accustomed to free and open access by external forces that we are overly vulnerable to Information Warfare?
- Should advances in information technology be used to supplement direct democracy?
Required Readings
* John T. Tierney, "Interest Group Involvement in Congressional, Foreign and Defense Policy," in Randall B. Ripley and James M. Lindsay [eds.], Congress Resurgent (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1993), pp. 89-111. (Reprint)
* Bruce C. Wolpe, Lobbying Congress (Washington, DC: Congressional Quarterly, 1990), pp. 9-15. (Reprint)
* James Madison, The Federalist Papers, Number 10. (Student Issue)
* Jonathan Rauch, "The Hyperpluralism Trap," The New Republic (June 6, 1994), pp. 22-25. (Reprint)
* Jonathan C. Smith, "Foreign Policy for Sale? Interest Group Influence on President Clinton's Cuba Policy," Presidential Studies Quarterly (Volume xxviii, August 1994), Number 1, pp. 207-218. (Reprint)
 |
 |
 |