chapter 6
political action committee (PAC)
a private group that raises and distributes funds for use in election campaigns
the most important thin interest groups need to be effective is
access to politicians
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
individuals have the best chance to influence public policy when they
are not opposed by organized interest groups
when interest groups combine small contributions from many sources to form one large contribution, it is called
bunding
in Texas, the most powerful interest groups represent which interests
business
interest groups provide public officials with all the following except a)information b)money c)media coverage d)votes e)committee assignments
committee assignments
dark money refers to
donated money that does not have to be reported by a campaign
interest groups often hire former legislators as lobbyists to
gain greater access to current legislators, benefit from the policy expertise of former legislators, benefit from the personal "insider" knowledge of the former legislator
interest-group capture
government agency that serves the objectives of the interests that the agency is supposed to regulate
lobbyists are
important sources of information for legislators
issue advocacy
independent spending by individuals or interest groups on a campaign issue but not directly tied to a particular candidate
the goals of interest groups include all expect 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
maintaining a heterogeneous membership
interest groups have an advantage over individuals in influencing policy because interest groups usually have
more time to influence officials, greater expertise than individuals, more money to influence election, more staff
dark money
political money where the donors of the money do not have to be disclosed
trial lawyers are which type of interest group
professional group
PACs are used to
stir the public's interest in politics, raise money from individuals, which is then bundled and given to candidates, create media campaigns to influence the course of government, create grassroots campaigns
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
interest groups have a hard time defeating incumbent legislators unless
the legislator is involved in scandal, the legislator has been redistricted, the legislator's positions have generated overwhelming opposition in the district
capture theory refers to the idea that
through long-term relationships, government interests come to serve the objectives of an interest group
one of the most important grassroots tactics of interest groups is
to get out the vote
the "8F Crowd"
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