AP Gov: 5.3 Interest Groups
Which of the following is the main reason interest groups are often successful in getting legislation passed to benefit their members?
A narrow constituency derives the benefits from such legislation but the costs are spread broadly across the population
Which of the following best describes an "iron triangle"?
A relationship between bureaucrats, legislators, and lobbyists, all of whom seek policies in their particular interest
Which of the following Supreme Court cases is most relevant to the topic of the cartoon?
Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission (2010)
Which of the following best describes the message in the political cartoon?
Contributions from special interests have undermined air and competitive political campaigns
The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (McCain-Feingold) did which of the following?
It banned soft money donations to national parties
Which of the following makes a correct comparison between political parties and interest groups in the US?
Political parties recruit and run candidates in elections // Interest groups seek to influence public policy
The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (McCain-Feingold) was designed to curtail which of the following?
Soft money
Two interest groups are competing for influence in Congress. One group represents banking institutions, while the other advocates for consumer protections. A critic of the influence of interest groups would make which of the following claims?
The banking interest group likely has greater financial resources and access to policy makers than the consumer protection group
Which of the following best illustrates the concept of iron triangles?
The long-term relationships between agencies, congressional committees, and interest groups in specific policy areas
A nonprofit advocacy group seeks to block an expensive subsidy to what it believes is an environmentally destructive project. Which of the following accurately depicts the free-rider problem in this scenario?
The public can expect to reap the benefits of blocking the subsidy without making any contribution to the nonprofit group
Which of the following is true of political action committees (PACa)?
They make campaign contributions in hopes of gaining access to legislators
The three points of an iron triangle include
an administrative agency, an interest group, and a congressional committee
A non litigant group or individual that want to attempt to influence the court in a particular case can file
an amicus curiae brief
How do interest groups lobby the courts?
by bringing lawsuits to the courts or filing amicus curiae briefs
Interest groups are protected under the Constitution by the
first amendment
In response to the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (McCain-Feingold Act), the US Supreme Court, in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010), ruled that
independent campaign expenditures by corporations and unions are protected by the First Amendment
All of the following tactics used by interest groups to influence the political process EXCEPT
keeping all lobbying records confidential
One of the best strategies that interest groups can use to achieve their goal is
lobbying members of Congress to make small changes in existing policy
The free rider problem occurs when
people benefit from an interest group's efforts without making any contribution
The theory that all interests are and should be free to compete for influence in government, resulting in healthy democratic compromise and balance, is called
pluralism
A major difference between political parties and interest groups is that
political parties seek to gain control of government, while interest groups seek to influence public policy
Interest groups use political action committees (PACs) to
raise and spend money on election campaigns
The legislative success of the National Rifle Association, antiabortion activists, and other powerful interest groups demonstrate that
the intensity of a minority's commitment to activism can override majority opinion on an issue
Lobbying is
the process by which interest groups attempt to influence the decisions of policymakers