Define Pressure Groups
A group of likeminded individuals who actively pursue ways to influence government policy
Pressure groups in the US are more influential than those in the UK for the following:
● Nature of parties. Broad and weak ideologically creates a space for PG’s to occupy. Many see them as more representative of them and not parties
● Constitution. US constitution allows PG’s to influence both a state and federal government. Also, separation of powers provides even more access points.
● Bill of rights. Protects freedom of speech in the 1st Amendment
Give an overview of Pressure Groups
Categories of Pressure groups
• Political parties seek to win control of government, pressure groups seek to influence those in governance, varying considerably in terms of size, wealth and influence
• Pressure groups in the USA operate at all levels of government – federal, state and local – and seek to bring their influence to bear on all three branches of government
• Professor Robert McKeever’s classification:
Type Example
Business: American Business Conference
National Automobile Dealers Association
Agriculture: American Farm Bureau Federation
National Farmers Union
Unions: American Federation of Labour and Congress of Industrial Organisations (AFL-CIO)
Professional: American Medical Association
American Bar Association
Single Issue: Mothers Against Drunk Driving
National Rifle Association (NRA)
Ideological: American Conservative Union
People for the American Way
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
Group Rights: National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP)
National Organisation for Women (NOW)
American Association of Retired Persons (AARP)
Public Interest: Common Cause
Friends of the Earth
Examine the broad typology of pressure groups
• Institutional groups
o Business and trade groups (e.g. American Business Conference) - half of all PG’s in Washington represent business groups due to the growth of regulation. Other groups include: labour unions (e.g. United Auto Workers), agricultural groups (National Farmers’ Union), professional groups (e.g. ABA) and intergovernmental groups.
• Membership groups
o They represent individual Americans and not organisations or groups.
o The membership of these groups may be single issue, such as the National Rifle Association or Mothers Against Drunk Driving. Or, ideological such as the ACLU.
o Alternatively, they may join a group that represents individuals with a common characteristic e.g. American Association of Retired Persons.
• Finally, there are think tanks which conduct research, write reports etc. often with an ideological slant e.g. American Enterprise Institute is conservative
What re the functions of pressure groups?
- Representation
a. They represent the interest of various groups in society
b. The above table shows some of the types of interest that pressure groups can represent
c. Around 70% of Americans are Pressure Group members - Citizen Participation
a. They increase the opportunities for ordinary citizens to participate in the decision making process between elections
b. Citizens can become involved in specific policy areas e.g. abortion - Public Education
a. They attempt to educate public opinion, warning people of dangers if issues are not addressed
b. One can see this being done by pressure groups operating in such issue areas as the environment and gun control
c. Groups such as Sierra leading to the Kyoto agreement on climate change under Bush - Agenda building
a. They attempt to influence the agendas of political parties, legislators and bureaucracies to give prominence and priority to their interests
b. They will attempt to bring together different parts of American society – for example, business groups, religious groups, state governments, professional organisations – to achieve a common interest - Programme monitoring
a. They will scrutinise and hold government to account in the implantation of policies to try and ensure that promises are fulfilled, policies are actually ‘delivered’ ad regulations are enforced
b. E.g. after the Campaign Reform Act 2002, the campaign Finance Institute commissioned a set of studies on the funding of campaigns. Or, pressure groups like the ACLU will sometimes bring cases to attention of state and federal courts.
What are the reasons for joining Pressure Groups?
• Material benefits
o A tangible reward for joining a party or donating. This can come in many different forms:
o Information. Groups may publish newsletters. For example, members of the NRA can receive magazines such as American Hunter for free
o Service benefits. The AARP offers benefits such as mail discount pharmacy, health insurance etc.
o Policy changes. These policy changes could benefit members e.g. lower regulation for business owners in American Business Conference
• Purposive benefits
o Members join to contribute to society. For example joining Amnesty International to draw attention to human rights abuses
• Solidarity benefits
o A social benefit brought about by interacting with those with similarly held view
How do Pressure Groups operate?
- Electioneering and Endorsement
a. Campaign Finance reform has meant that significant changes have taken place in the electioneering and fundraising roles of pressure groups
b. The 1970s reforms encouraged the setting up of Political Action Committees (PACs) – organisation whose purpose is to raise and then give campaign funds to candidates for political office
c. There is a clear trend that incumbents attract more PAC money than challengers
d. Pressure groups endorse or oppose candidates for political office based on the candidates’ position on the policy areas of concern to them
e. At election time, groups will often publish voter guides on their websites showing which candidates most closely support the group’s stand on issues - Lobbying
a. In order to facilitate lobbying, many groups have offices in Washington DC, state capitals and other major US cities
b. In Washington, the lobbyist firms are collectively known as the ‘k street corridor’ – named after the street in the city where many lobbyists hold offices
c. Lobbyists provide policy maker with information
d. And for members of Congress, they may also provide them with important voting cues
e. Many lobbying firms recruit former policy-makers through what is known as ‘revolving door syndrome’
f. Many based in Washington, with many lobbying firms built around former prominent members of government e.g. John Ashcroft former Attorney General has the Ashcroft Group, to better influence the executive.
g. PG’s also provide legislators with voting cues. For example, Democrats look to the ACLU to make sure they are standing on the right side of an issue. E.g. on the 2010 healthcare Act, 20% of campaign funds for Max Baucus, chair of the Senate Finance Committee, was contributed by lobbyists linked to PhArma, representing the pharmaceutical industry - Publicity
a. Lobbying firms launch public relations campaigns to influence the policy making process
b. Both the Bush and Obama presidencies have felt the effect of powerful lobbying firms launching publicity blitzes against some of their flagship policy – healthcare and social security reform, to name but two
c. Publicity campaigns are also waged through a number of different means such as television advertisements, journal advertising, roadside advertising, roadside hoardings, bumper stickers and badges
d. Launch public relation campaigns. For example, when the FDA announced plans to ban saccharin due to link with cancer, the Calorie Control Council, which has close links to Coca-Cola, ran advertisement campaigns against it.
e. Bumper stickers, billboards, etc. are also used.
f. Some pressure groups also send publicity directly to lawmakers through promotional DVD’s. - Organising Grassroots activates
a. These include postal blitzes on members of Congress, the White House or a government department, marches and demonstrations
b. Most are peaceful, but some may resort to violence
What are the access points for Pressure Groups?
• Congress. Seek to influence the way House and Senate members vote. They do this through three main methods:
o Direct contact. Contact members of Congress and senior staff e.g. John Lewis’ (D- Georgia) constituency largest employer is Coca-Cola and their requests are always received favourably
o Contact with congressional committees. Most of work by legislative lobbyists targeted on committees as they can amend legislation. Committees are small, so lobbyists can build a relationship with members eventually leading to members of Congress contacting lobbyists for information.
o Organise constituents. To write, phone, email their member of Congress to support or oppose a certain policy.
• Executive
o Pressure groups seek strong ties with executive agencies and departments. This is especially the case when it comes to regulatory work of the federal government, for example of health and safety.
o Pressure groups can act as sources of advice on policy and play an important link between the public and president.
o Pressure groups also provide advice on appointments (e.g. ABA) which also helps prevent accusation that the President appoints past colleagues or friends.
o Conversely, pressure groups can work to prevent policy succeeding e.g. Affordable Care Act
• Judiciary
o Groups, like the ABA, take an interest in the president’s nominees to the Supreme Court e.g. ABA provides scores which can be significant in the confirmation process in the Senate e.g.2. In 2005 nomination of Harriet Miers withdrawn in response to attacks from groups who questioned the depths of her conservative credentials
o Or, groups may influence courts by offering amicus curiae where they present their views to the court. The ACLU does this. E.g. the NRA played a significant role in Columbia vs. Heller which declared the ban on handguns in Washington unconstitutional.
• Elections. Creating voters:
o Groups such as residents of Washington DC who cannot vote in Congressional or Senate elections or released felons who in 13 states are disenfranchised for life
o Also help with voter registration. E.g. NAACP campaign for ‘motor voter’ Act of 1993 to allow voters to register when they renew their driving licence
• Choosing right candidate
o Pressure groups donate funds to candidates, provide information on who to support, assist people in reaching polling booths, etc. E.g. a group of 20 labour unions have reaffirmed their support of Clinton. These candidate adopt similar objectives to PG’s
• Electing the right candidate
o Leaflets, signs, calls etc. Pressure groups also grade incumbents on how much support their agendas received e.g. 2006 Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) got an F from the NRA and lost
• House of Representatives
o More effective in the House due to biannual re-election. Relationships are developed with lobbyists to further a group’s cause e.g. when Bush proposed social security reform, the Free Enterprise Fund approached Paul Ryan to introduce a bill that reflected their views.
o PG’s also want relationships due to committee assignments e.g. John Lewis (D) consistently opposed interests of the pharmaceutical industry and his membership of the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee has a direct impact on the industry. Therefore, pharmaceutical companies provided medical scholarships to blacks
What is the political significance of pressure groups?
- The USA is a diverse and heterogeneous society
a. The US has been described as a ‘melting pot’, conveying the picture of all types of diverse groups of people mixed together
b. The more diverse a society is, the greater will be the variety of special interests to represent
c. One can see this immediately in the racial mix of American society
d. Another term used to refer to the USA is that it is the ‘hyphenated society’
e. Everyone seems to have a prefix to their being an ‘American’, whether it be ‘African American’, ‘Cuban American’, ‘Polish American’ etc.’ and each has its own pressure group - The American Political System has a great many access points
a. In the UK, political power is quite highly centralised
b. There are few access points for ordinary citizens to influence government
c. But in the USA there is a doctrine of ‘shared powers’ – shared between the three branches of the federal government as well as between the federal government and the state governments
d. Even an institution like Congress is fragmented
e. It is not just in the two chambers that decisions are made, but in the numerous committee rooms as well
f. There are, therefore, many access points - The Weakness of political parties means that citizens turn more to pressure groups
a. In the USA, which has relatively weak, decentralised and undisciplined political parties, parties are not seen as the only groups which organise political activity
b. It is also quite likely that one party will control the executive and the other the legislature
c. Bill Clinton only controlled Congress for 2 of his 8 years in office
Examine Pressure Groups’ impact on the Federal Government
Influence on the Federal Government
• Pressure groups attempt to influence Congress, the executive branch and the courts
• American government has far more ‘access points’ than does government in the UK
• This enhances the potential for influence by pressure groups
• And in a system where political parties are clearly weaker than they are in the UK, this again increases opportunities for pressure groups to have greater degrees of influence
Explain the influence of Pressure Groups on the legislature
• Pressure groups seek to influence the way House and Senate members vote, their methods include:
o Direct contact with House and Senate members and their senior staff
o Direct contact with the relevant House and Senate committee members and their staff
o Organising constituents to write to, phone, fax, email or visit their House and Senate members to express their support for or opposition to a certain policy initiative
o Publicising the voting records of House and Senate members
o Endorsement of supportive members and opposition to non-supportive members in forthcoming re-election campaigns
o Fundraising and campaingning for or against members of Congress – paying for radio/television advertisements etc.
o The pressure group EMILY’s List supports female congressional candidates, helping them raise money early on in the electoral cycle
• Pressure groups may also launch high-profile campaigns in the media when a significant piece of legislation is about to come up for a crucial debate and vote in Congress
• Recent examples include congressional debates and votes on healthcare reform, welfare reform, gun control ad international environmental agreements
Explain the influence of Pressure Groups on the executive
- Pressure groups seek to maintain strong ties with relevant executive departments, agencies and regulatory commissions
- This is especially the case when it comes to the regulatory work of the federal government – regulations, for example, regarding health and safety at work, business, the transport and communications industries or the environment
- Problems can emerge when regulatory bodies are thought to have too cosy a relationship with the particular group they are meant to regulating – watch dogs or lap dogs?
- Edward Ashbee and Nigel Ashford identified another close link: that between what they call ‘producer’ groups – such as companies, labour unions or small business federations – and relevant government departments and agencies seeking protection, funding, subsidies or price guarantee mechanisms
Explain the influence of Pressure Groups on the judiciary
- Pressure groups can hope to influence the courts by offering amicus cure (‘friend of the court’) briefings
- Through these, pressure groups will have an opportunity to present their views to the court in writing before oral arguments are heard
- Pressure groups have certainly used this to great effect in recent decades such as the civil rights of racial minorities, abortion rights and 1st Amendment rights
- The NAACP was the force behind Brown 1954 as well as the subsequent passage of much civil rights legislation
- The NAACPS has continued to be at the centre of political debate in the USA over affirmative action programmes
- Pressure groups may bring cases themselves, such as the 2005 McCreary County. American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky
- Both the pro-choice and pro-life lobbies have been active in American politics during the past four decades most recently they have been involved in the debate concerning the practise of ‘partial birth abortions’
- In 20000, the Supreme Court refused to allow states to ban this type of abortion, but in 2007 the Supreme Court upheld the ban, declaring it to be constitutional
- The NRA played an important role in District of Columbia v. Heller 2008 in which the court declared unconstitutional the law banning the ownership of handguns in the district
- In the last 20 years pressure groups have also been active in supporting or opposing the nomination of judges, especially those of the Supreme Court
- They were active in the Senate confirmation hearing surrounding Robert Bork 1987 and Clarence Thomas 1991, as well as those of John Roberts 2005 and Samuel Alito 2006
Examine the arguments in favour of Pressure Groups
• There is an important debate about the impact and role of pressure groups in a democracy
• Arguments in favour of pressure groups having an important role to play in American politics stress that pressure groups provide useful functions by acting as:
o Policy formulators
o A ‘sounding board’ for members of Congress and government departments
o Enhancers of political participation, especially between elections and on specific issues
o Participation. The most common form of interaction with government for most Americans allows political activity outside election cycle. Membership of PG’s is on the rise but party membership is falling, and provides a new form of activism e.g. the Occupy movement
o Representation. Pressure groups can represent minority groups, especially those underrepresented in Congress e.g. the NAACP. The 1st Amendment itself with a right ‘to petition’ suggests the Founding Fathers wanted a conversation between the government and the people. E.g. in 2003 Lawrence v Texas funded by Lambda Legal (a lesbian and gay advocacy group) and led to the ruling that discrimination against gays was unconstitutional
o Information. They provide legislators with information at the policy formulation stage of the legislative process or for other governmental issues e.g. scores for Supreme Court nominees by the ABA. They also provide information to their members on topics e.g. League of Conservation of Voters lists the ‘dirty dozen’ to highlight voting records.
Examine the arguments against Pressure Groups
• Arguments against pressure groups having as much power as they currently seem to have in American politics include the following:
o Money becomes the all-deciding factor – you have to ‘pay to play’, The late Senator Edward Kennedy once commented that America has ‘the finest Congress that money can buy’.
o They tend to be elitist and largely unaccountable and their power thereby detracts from elected (Congress) and accountable (executive) officials
o They sometimes use methods of ‘direct action’ that are deemed by others to be inappropriate: for example, methods recently used by animal rights groups, pro- and anti-abortion groups, environmentalists and anti-capitalist groups
Explain the revolving door syndrome
Practice by which former members of Congress or the executive join lobbying firms and then use their expertise or contacts to lobby the institution of which they were once a member. Federal law forbids public officials from taking a job as a lobbyist within a year of leaving public office. Critics argue that people exploit their contacts to further interests of pressure groups and make money for themselves. It is alleged serving politicians may favour particular group interests because they are hoping for a job representing that interest should they lose their public office. For example, in 2014 50% of 75 members who lost public office joined lobbying firms according to OpenSecrets. E.g. Ashcroft Group where within a month one of the clients won a multi-billion dollar Dept. of Justice deal. It also works the other way round e.g. Haley Barbour left lobbying firm BGR to become Governor of Mississippi in 2004
Explain the Iron Triangle
Term to describe the strong relationship between pressure groups, relevant congressional committees and relevant government departments, in a attempt to guarantee the policy outcomes for all three parties involved. E.g. the veterans iron triangle with PG’s like Disabled American Veterans connected to the Veterans’ Affairs committee of the House and Senate and then Department of Veterans’ Affairs.
Questions over whether is compatible with a pluralist society as pluralism involves the spread of resources and power amongst diverse groups and individuals whereas many see PG’s fostering an elitist view of society where political resources are in the hands of the few e.g. the 2010 $726bn Defence Authorisation Act highlighted the issue of iron triangles where Defense Secretary unsuccessfully urged Obama to veto the bill which contained funding for unwanted projects
Explain the inequality of Pressure Groups
Pressure groups representing different sides are clearly unequal, especially big business e.g. the military-industrial complex versus pacifist groups. Likewise, the NRA and groups like Handgun Control Inc.. Another example is the tobacco industry having far more resources than those opposed to smoking. Critics argue this puts forward the preferences of big business and not what is best for society. This goes against the Founding Fathers’ aspiration that power should not be concentrated in a few hands.
Salisbury, political scientist, argued that even when groups are equal, they compete each other to a standstill, resulting in them having far less influence than their prominence might suggest
Explain the argument between special and public interest groups
They put the interests of small groups before the interests of society as a whole. For example, the NAACP or the American Jewish Congress have been adding to a splintering or ‘atomisation’ of US society. They spend too much time working for special interests and not for the wider public interest; provided their client is satisfied they rarely consider the implications for society.
Can also lead to group stereotyping, thinking they all want the same policy outcomes e.g. black conservative SCOTUS nominee Clarence Thomas was heavily criticised as he did not fit the liberal politics espoused by the NAACP and other black pressure groups.
Examine the factors which lead to the success of Pressure Groups
- Effective organisation and leadership
a. Some groups are easier to organise than others
b. Producers are easier to organist than consumers, for example; teachers are easier to organise than students
c. The NRA exhibits effective organisation and leadership whereas the Occupy movement do not - Wealth
a. A pressure group can do little with no money
b. Corporate and trade groups are among the wealthiest
c. Money brings the ability to do more lobbying, engage in more campaigning, and have more attractive and effective publicity material and websites
d. McKay stated: “The results indicate that having money alone does not make a lobbying organisation more successful – but having more money is linked to certain lobbying tactics and traits, and some of these are associated with greater policy success.”
e. The largest group donor is ActBlue, with corporate and trade groups often the richest. Money allows greater lobbying, more campaigning, better websites etc. However, some groups have success without lots of money e.g. Sierra Club spent just under $250,000 in 2013 but has had success - Large membership
a. The larger the membership, the more successful the group is likely to be and the more realistic it is for the group to claim that it represents a large and important section of society
b. The larger the group, the easier it is for that group to claim it represents a large segment of society. And the larger the group, the larger the bank balance due to amount of subscriptions e.g. AARP is the largest with some 40m members.
c. Politicians will gauge how electorally costly it might be to ignore a group’s views; the more popular the issue the more pressure. For example, in 2006 Senator DeWine (R-Ohio) received an F from the NRA report card and lost the race. - Status and effectiveness of the opposition
a. Most groups have another group arguing the opposite corner
b. The stronger the opposition, the stronger the group needs to be in order to win the argument - Achievability of the group’s goal
a. A group that wants to keep abortion legal has a much easier task than one which wishes to ban all abortions
b. But achievability may vary with time and perseverance
c. Society’s views have changed significantly in recent decades on such topics as drink driving, capital punishment and smoking in public places. Some groups therefore become redundant. For example, the anti-civil rights movement like the KKK has all but collapsed.
Explain the regulation of Pressure Groups
• Honest leadership and Open Government Act (2007). This attempted to solve several problems:
o Close revolving door. Sets a ‘cooling off’ period between leaving public office and lobbying their former office, of around 1 -2 years.
o Prohibit gifts. Lobbyists or pressure groups can’t sponsored trips or providing gifts. E.g. the Sierra Club can no longer take members of Congress to national parks to demonstrate impact of environmental regulations
o Disclosure of lobbying activity. Must be filed quarterly and no longer yearly, mandatory disclosure of earmarks in expenditure bills
o Built on the Lobbying Disclosure Act 1995 bringing a level of accountability to federal
