POLS101 Chapter 9

Which statement explains why government bureaucracies tend to become influential interest groups?

Bureaucrats in specialized agencies have a major role in crafting legislation.

Which statement explains why a candidate for office in the United States would find the issue of abortion politically challenging?

Catholics and Protestant fundamentalists are highly influential interest groups.

The amount of money currently spent on lobbying the federal government is roughly $_________ per year.

9 billion

Which is a major shortcoming of a government that is heavily influenced by interest groups?

People don't have resources

Which statement explains why the issue of access challenges the pluralist theory?

Pluralists assume that all groups have access to policy makers when some groups are actually shut out of the system almost entirely.

The National Rifle Association generally supports __________ candidates.

Republican

Which statement explains why unions seem powerful to the American public?

Strikes at large, unionized companies attract a lot of media attention

Which of the following policies would be most likely to be considered a hot potato?

a new law tightening requirements for purchasing a gun

An interest group with structured access has __________ relationship with government.

a stable and beneficial

For interest groups to function properly, there must be __________.

a strong government

When an industry such as coal or cotton advertises on television, it is often trying to show the public that it __________.

benefits society in general

Interest groups typically approach __________ looking for a favorable interpretation of existing rules and regulations.

bureaucrats

Interest groups in the United States tend to over-represent __________.

business interests

Which of these concepts is most strongly associated with Henry David Thoreau, Mahatma Gandhi, and Martin Luther King, Jr.?

civil disobedience

A government-created interest group is one that results from __________.

creation of a government program or bureaucracy

An interest group whose membership is dominated by retired persons is most likely to lobby __________.

for an expansion of Medicare benefits

Tocqueville noted that Americans are unusually fond of __________.

forming associations

In order to prevent interest groups from influencing politics, it would be necessary to curtail their __________.

freedom of expression

The Tobacco Institute maintains a low profile by __________ rather than operating in ways that are obvious to the public.

funding research that supports its agenda

A "stalemate society" is one in which __________.

government is trapped by competing interests

According to Olson, small, well-organized groups often override the broader public interest because they __________.

have much to gain from favorable but narrow laws and rulings, so they lobby intensely

Government programs tend to be difficult to cut back or eliminate in the United States because __________.

interest groups lobby to protect their benefits

The Enron energy scandal and the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis illustrate which problem?

interest groups setting up laws that favor only themselves

Which of these is an example of two distinct interest groups working for the same cause?

libertarians and cancer patients both opposing laws against medical marijuana

The central concern behind the formation of single-issue interest groups tends to be __________.

moral

Which of these is a strategy that interest groups tend to avoid?

nominating a candidate to run for public office

In a weak state, interest groups _________.

often include powerful criminal gangs

Suppose you belong to a single-issue interest group with very little funding. Which of these is your best approach to influencing public policy?

perform high-profile acts of civil disobedience

Which term describes a democratic system where all kinds of people with different opinions and values compete to influence government policy?

pluralist

Democrats and Republicans tend to agree that the tax code is __________.

too confusing

The courts are most likely to become an arena for interest group competition in a country __________.

where the rule of law is strong

Which of these was most helpful to the Occupy Wall Street protesters?

the use of social media

The trend toward negative advertising in political campaigns is spurred in by __________.

the use of soft money

Which statement explains what has happened to federal oversight of the financial industry since the 1980s?

Congress has generally delivered whatever the financial industry wanted, repealing laws and rolling back safeguards.

What did Olson believe would happen if interest groups became progressively stronger over time?

Economic growth would stagnate.

Governments create interest groups to help them manage society.

False

Interest groups and political parties perform the same function in the political system.

False

Interest groups in the United States work through the legislative and executive branches but not the judicial branch.

False

Since the 1970s, the number of single-issue interest groups has risen.

False

The success of an interest group generally depends on how controversial its cause is.

False

Which statement describes how France differs from the United States with respect to the interest group system?

French interest groups operate in a more constrained atmosphere.

Which statement explains the relationship between lobbying the executive branch and lobbying the legislative branch in the United States?

Interest groups apply roughly the same tactics when lobbying both branches.

Which of these is a potential problem of corporatism?

It could undermine the good of society.

Which statement explains why the 2010 health care reform bill contained no provision for a public insurance option?

Lobbyists for the health insurance industry were able to convince Congress to drop consideration of a public option.

Which statement expresses a normative element of pluralism?

The government should support competition and interaction among interest groups.

Which of these statements describes the theory of countervailing power?

The influence of interest groups tends to balance out because groups emerge on both sides of any issue.

In which of these ways is a pluralist most like the role an interest group plays in society?

They make a positive contribution to the political system.

An interest group's socioeconomic status is correlated with its level of success.

True

Enron executives benefitted financially from the company's collapse.

True

Government bureaucracies can become large and powerful interest groups.

True

Individuals have little power and influence in a democracy; by joining together with others in an interest group, individuals can increase their power and influence.

True

The Tillman Act of 1907 was the first attempt to limit campaign financing in the United States.

True

Which group has the most influence over politics in the United States?

racial and ethnic minorities

Lobbyists often call themselves __________ to get around the registration and reporting requirements for lobbyists.

strategic consultants

A strong state is necessary for a healthy interest group environment because strong states have __________.

the ability to keep groups from acting outside the law

Rousseau influenced French attitudes toward pluralism by arguing that __________.

the general will was more important than particular wills