How Do Interest Groups Influence Public Policy

Interest groups have a lot of influence over decision that the government makes and has made. These groups, when formed right, are highly organized and have a definite agenda they are trying to push that is important to them. Interest groups will lobby in congress as well as other levels of government to get new laws and regulations passed.

They just do such thing which are beneficial for them, while doing that they don’t listen the voice of people’s what they want. Texas Medical Association, Democratic Congressional Campaign Cmte are some of the examples of 21st interest groups. Texas Medical Association influenced the lawmaking because they proposed new rules under the Women’s Health Program would place a “gag order” on doctors violating their free speech rights and harming the doctor- patient relationship, by preventing them from discussing abortion with their parents (TEXAS RIGHT TO LIFE). Democratic Congressional Campaign Cmte influenced lawmaking by spending $216,358,583 (Open

In this essay I will be discussing the affect interest groups have on relationship between Congress and Special Interest Groups. Interest groups are made of people that share a common interest and try to influence public policy to benefit themselves.There are several categories and subcategories of these groups that play a huge role in giving a voice to the citizens of this country. There are many weakness in our system giving these groups the ability to impact policy making to boosting a candidate for office. With the amount of power given to interest groups there comes a question as to whether or not their influence affects the legitimacy of the American legislative process.

The United States has experienced fundamental changes that are dramatically detrimental to democracy. Voters’ ability to define political discourse has been so diminished that even decisive election results like Barack Obama’s in 2012 have little impact. That’s because powerful interests — freed to, in effect, buy elections, unhindered by downsized and diffused media that must rely on revenue from campaign ads — now set the rules of engagement. Lobbying involves working to bring pressure to bear on policy makers to gain favorable policy outcomes. In order to accomplish their goals, interest groups develop a strategy or plan of action and execute it through specific tactics. The particular strategies developed and the specific tactics used, however, vary widely both among and within political

Limiting interest group is like cutting off the blood that flows through America’s vein. Interest groups plays a pivotal role in todays U.S society ranging from but not limited to; helping Congress and the administration to draft legislation and policy initiatives, provide information both to government and the public on a broad range of topical issues, and contribute significantly to political

There are many 21st century interest groups that make a difference in our country. An

You have put across some important points that I concur with. While it may look like interest groups are representing the issues of the majority, I think they are out there representing their own issues and those beneficial to them. Weaker interest groups do not have a fair chance compared to influential ones and this could be due to lack of political support, and inadequate financial resources which are both significant in the influence of an interest group. Regulation on how these groups operate could probably give a fair chance to most if not all interest groups. I like that you pointed out that "legislation is not created equal," because this lack of inequality is a good opportunity for an interest group to be created and help bring equality.

There are many hundreds of interest groups in the United States, all advocating and arguing to change or defend someone or something that they feel is being threatened. Three of which are the National Rifle Association (NRA), the Dollar Coin Alliance, and the Sports Fans Coalition. These three interest groups, also known as lobby groups, advocacy groups, and more, are interesting in their own way. By comparing these three groups, the diversity and wide variety of these groups show how much variety there is in the interest group world.

We start this essay with this famous quote from Berry introducing us to what exactly an interest group is. Indeed in general, public opinion and people unaware of an interest group’s actions might regard interest groups in a negative light. The more famous interest groups can tend to generate a lot of negative publicity. For instance, in the US one of the most famous interest groups is the National Rifle Association, which defends the right to bear weapons. This, of course, has led to controversy especially given the recent high school shootings in

People are important for the success of democracy. After electing their representatives, some individuals wish to be more involved in legislative decisions that affect them, so they take to lobbying and joining interest groups. This often provides them with an atmosphere of individuals who think like they do, while also allowing them to play more of a role than just voting for a few people to represent them. Lobbying and interest groups also allow for issues to be brought to the attention of the legislature and provide a way for these groups to talk to the legislators, whether it is over dinner or at a concert. By voicing their opinions and placing pressures on the legislation, these groups have become successful in fighting for their passions and their views on important

From a broad perspective, it is integral to note that political parties and special interest groups alike markedly differ from one another. However, one particularly noteworthy difference, entailing the degree to which select topic(s)-of-interests are underscored, captures the very essence of such a stark contrast. Venturing deeper into the specifics, political parties typically address numerous issues, whether it be the mundane issue of “global warming” or more controversial issue of abortion. On the other hand, special interest groups specialize in one particular realm, whether it be an economic quandary or a prevailing environmental dilemma. In order to better elucidate upon this particular discrepancy, a commonplace special interest group

We elect politicians on the basis on the issues by which they stand, and these issues are either held up or weakened by the numerous interest groups that exist today. Interest groups target both major and minor issues, using all of their resources to sponsor or overpower the groups' concern. Interest groups are composed of a limited range of the body of voters who have a great stake in the issues their group support. They make evident the issues their group supports. Their resources are used in an attempt to make their issue public policy. Interest groups are persistent; they do not give up until they succeed. They lobby congress, take legal action, and attempt to

Public interest lobbies form a linkage element between citizens and governmental elites. In lobbying they articulate what they perceive to be the issue positions of certain sectors of society. Public interest groups also play an important role in facilitating the political participation of their members and related attentive publics. By helping to bring new issues to the table, interest groups influence the shape of political agendas.

There are some interest groups that are extremely powerful and exercise considerable influence over the formation of public policy, whereas others are ineffectual and weak. (101). There are various factors that make a group more powerful than the other. Financial resources determines the group’s power. Organizations representing large co-operations are at a much better position to raise funds. It is unfair for regular citizens because they would not be heard because of less collective power and less money for campaign contributions. Citizens need to be heard too, regardless of their financial capabilities. Powerful interest groups do not make it possible for the citizens’ voices to be heard. The same applies to the groups that represent low income people, they have it difficult raising the money required for lobbying.

One key debate among the authors is what is actually influenced by lawmaking. On one hand, Hansen (1991) takes the perspective that lobbying influences the relationship between interest groups and lawmakers. Hansen bases his argument on the belief that because legislators want to be reelected and they lack information about the “issue preferences of their constituents, the salience of issues to their constituents, and the effectiveness of various policy options,” they will seek information to reduce this uncertainty. The service that interest groups provide the, is this information. Certain interest groups, Hansen argues have “competitive advantage,” (p. 13) in the sense that they can provide certainty about constituent beliefs in an efficient and effective manner, in order to help lawmakers get reelected. Given that elections re-occur, an additional point Hansen makes is for interest groups to have some kind of influence over lawmakers, the conditions that provide this competitive advantage must be expected to recur. When these conditions are met, interest groups