Question

1. Explain the concerns some observers have about interest groups in the U.S. political system. Address the membership of those groups, the resources they use, and the effects they have. Use examples wherever possible.

Answer 1

SOLUTION

INTEREST GROUPS IN U.S POLITICAL SYSTEMS

While the term interest group is not mentioned in the U.S constitution, the frames were aware that the individuals would band together in an atempt to use government in their favour. In Federalist No. 10, James Madison warned of the dangers of " factions ", minorities who would organize around issues they felt strongly about, possibly to the detriment of the majority. But Madison believed limiting these factions was than facing the evils they might produce, because limiting those limitations would violate such freedoms. Instead, the natural way to control factions was to let them flourish and compete against each other. The sheer number of interests in the United States suggests that they may have indeed flourished. They compete with similar groups for membership, and with opponents for access to decision makers. Some people suggest that there may be too many interests in the United States. Others argue that some have gained a dis-appropriate amount of influence over public policy, whereas many others are under-represented. Political parties and interest groups both work together and compete for influence, although in different ways. While interest group activity often transcends party lines, many interests are percieved as more supportive of one party than the other.At the state level, we typically observe an inverse relationship between them in terms of power. Interest groupd tend to have greater influence in states where political parties are comparitively weaker.

EXAMPLES

• Common cause
• National organization for Women
• National right to life committe

MEMBERSHIP OF THOSE GROUPS

a) ECONOMIC GROUP

Economic groups, which seeks some sort of economic advantage for their members, are the most common type of interest group. Money has significant influence in capitalist societies, so the economic interest groups are numerous and powerful. These groups are generally well funded because members willingly contribute money in the hopes of reaping greater political influence and profit.

b) BUSINESS GROUPS

Business groups are the most common type of interest groups, more than half of all registered lobbyists work for business organisations. Some business lobbyists work for a single corporation, lobbying solely for that company . Businesses also form association with companies from the same interest to promote all the interests.

RESOURCES USED

Interest group influence primarly from the ability to mobilize human resources; the financial resources of these groups tend to be modest. Industry and industry-supported groups, in contrast possess considerable financial power while enjoying less support from the public. Consequently industry interests tend to focus their focus their efforts on more traditional forms of influence such as the persistent lobbying of natural resourse agencies and elected officials. Interest groups tend to devote considerable efforts to building public support in urban core areas to build the capacity to pressure government makers.

EFFECTS

These interest groups represent interests that support and lobby for areas of special need. Groups like this advocate for their special interests and form a base of support that will assist them in moving along their public issue