Groups and Interests state and local gov day one

What is Lobbying?

It is APPEALS. its a strategy for any individual to shape legislation by developing relationships with legislation officials and influence their decisions through persuasion and influence.

What are interest Groups?

Groups that make appeals; Groups of people who are united in the effort to pressure government to adopt favorable policies to their interests

The logic behind lobbying

Governments benefit from lobbying, and lobbying relies on people with expertise

Lobbying provides governments with…

1. critical information

2. support

How do Lobbyist give the government support?

• they are natural representative for gov

• scope and complexity and gov has grown in lobbying over the years

The Logic of Lobbying: Madison’s FP #10

Introduces the American citizens to factions, what they are and the problems they create

Madison defines factions as…

selfish, and tyrannical

James Madison says that the American people must not adopt faction, but also can not be rid of it due to human nature. How, then, does he suggest we solve the problem of factions?

Seperate Institutions; the solution to factions is competition, we can not get rid of them so we create a government that tolerates them.

What is another solution to factions?

Demographic and geographic diversity and Institutional and social pluralism

David Truman’s The Governmental Process (1951)

David Truman (the modern embodiment of Madison) Explains interest groups further with the idea that Disturbances or Exogenous Shocks, An interest group is formed from a latent group.

According to Truman our country is….

built on compromises and moderation

What is a Latent interest?

always existed but the thing that triggers them happens and they become an interest

Truman defined pluralism. How is it defined?

intereest compete freely, comprise and balance

Is pluralism accurate?

“The flaw in the pluralist heaven is that the heavenly chorus sings with a strong upper-class accent,” Schattscheider ( the rich get richer and the poor get poorer

Mancur Olson, The Logic of Collective Action (1965)

Who will organize and find resources? Most people free ride…particularly on public goods.

The oil case

Price Increases for oil producers v. oil consumers —> who solves the free-rider problem easiest?

>small groups

>interests with much at stake

• groups’ size and stakes matter