Texas Government - Ch. 6

dark money

political contributions whose donors are not legally required to be disclosed

Interest-group capture

process by which a government agency comes to serve the objectives of the interests that the agency is supposed to regulate

free rider problem

the incentive to benefit from others' work without making a contribution, which leads individuals in a collective action situation to refuse to work together

bundling

the interest-group practice of combining campaign contributions from several sources into one larger contribution from the group, so as to increase the group's impact on the candidate

• Define interest groups, and describe the major ways they try to influence Texas government (pp. 185-98)

Interest groups in Texas are organizations of interested citizens who band together to influence public policy. Lob-byists are hired to cultivate relationships with legislators and convince them of their clients' interests. The goal of lobbyists is to gain access to policy makers to persuade them to support the positions of the interest group.

• Describe the role of PACs in Texas elections (pp. 198-205)

Political action committees (PACs) are private groups that raise and distribute funds for election campaigns. Interest groups play a major role in getting out the vote. Interest-group money can play a major role in defeating as well as electing candidates.

• Explain how ordinary individuals can influence Texas government (pp. 205-7)

Citizens can lobby their legislators by calling, writing, or visiting their offices. Industries and well-financed inter-ests can afford professional lobbyists to try to influence legislation, but legislators will listen to individual citi-zens, especially if they join together in large numbers.

political action committee (PAC)

a private group that raises and distributes funds for use in election campaigns

9. Lobbyists are

a) all corrupt. b) all unethical. c) important sources of information for legislators. d) harmful to the democratic process. e) never retired legislators.

15. Individuals have the best chance to influence public policy when they

a) are not opposed by organized interest groups. b) are polite. c) entertain legislators. d) vote. e) live in Austin.

5. When interest groups combine small contributions from many sources to form one large contribution, it is called

a) bundling. b) compacting. c) cracking. d) polling. e) packing.

10. In Texas, the most powerful interest groups repre-sent which interests?

a) consumer b) civil rights c) business d) owners of oil wells e) public employee

3. The goals of interest groups include all except

a) electing people to office in order to support the groups' goals. b) influencing those who control government. c) educating the public and members about issues of importance to the group. d) providing campaign funds for favored candidates. e) maintaining a heterogeneous membership.

8. Interest groups often hire former legislators as lob-byists to

a) gain greater access to current legislators. b) benefit from the policy expertise of former legislators. c) benefit from the personal "insider" knowledge of the former legislator. d) all of the above e) none of the above

2. Interest groups provide public officials with all the following except

a) information. b) money. c) media coverage. d) votes. e) committee assignments.

14. Capture theory refers to the idea that

a) interest groups are controlled by politicians. b) through long-term relationships, government interests come to serve the objectives of an interest group. c) politicians work for the public good by control-ling special interests. d) labor unions are controlled by business. e) business interests are captured by labor unions.

13. Dark money refers to

a) money that is illegally donated to politicians for their re-election. b) money that cannot be used to pay typical campaign expenditures. c) vouchers that candidates can use to fund their campaigns. d) donated money that does not have to be reported by a campaign. e) money that is printed on special dark green paper specifically formulated for campaigns.

4. Interest groups have an advantage over individuals in influencing policy because interest groups usually have

a) more time to influence officials. b) greater expertise than individuals. c) more money to influence elections. d) more staff. e) all of the above

7. Trial lawyers are which type of interest group?

a) professional group b) public employee group c) single-issue group d) consumer group e) business group

16. On the measures of civic health, Texas

a) ranks higher than most other states. b) ranks lower than most other states. c) ranks about the same as other states. d) is stronger than average on some measures and weaker than average on others. e) ranks highly when it comes to Texans contacting elected officials, compared to other states.

11. PACs are used to

a) stir the public's interest in politics. b) raise money from individuals, which is then bundled and given to candidates. c) create media campaigns to influence the course of government. d) create grassroots campaigns. e) all of the above

6. The most important thing interest groups need to be effective is

a) the support of a majority of Texans. b) office space in Austin. c) a variety of issues on which to lobby. d) a large, paid staff. e) access to politicians.

12. One of the most important grassroots tactics of interest groups is

a) to gain support from all the mayors of towns in a district. b) to get out the vote. c) to form political alliances with executive and legislative leaders. d) to lobby the judicial branch of national and state government. e) to interpret the needs of their members.

Practice Quiz 1. The "8F Crowd"

a) was a group of legislators who failed the eighth grade. b) was a group of extremely wealthy Texans who met in Suite 8F of the Lamar Hotel in Houston and controlled Texas politics for 40 years. c) were 25 legislators who boycotted the eighth session of the legislature in order to prevent the legislators from taking any action because it lacked a quorum. d) was made up of eight lobbyists who were close friends of the governor. e) were the eight most powerful officials in the state who met in Suite F of the Austin State Office Building.

lobbyist

an individual employed by an interest group who tries to influence governmental decisions on behalf of that group

interest group

an organization established to influence the government's programs and policies

issue advocacy

independent spending by individuals or interest groups on a campaign issue but not directly tied to a particular candidate