Political Science Discussion & Discussion Response

1 page APA

Social movements can at times use disruptive behaviors. What are some of the possible benefits of disruptive behaviors in social movements? What are the drawbacks or possible negative consequences? What does the First Amendment state concerning citizens’ right to use disruptive methods? Refer to examples from history as you frame your analysis. Explain your answer.

As Jordan and Maloney (2007) observed, interest groups play an important role in helping to increase participation opportunities for wide ranges of citizens within democracies.  Rather than being limited to the act of merely voting, interest groups allow citizens the opportunity to collectivize around shared interests and concerns, thus increasing their ability to be heard by elected representatives.  However, as noted in the initial discussion question prompt, many times the spokespeople for interest groups are former elected representatives themselves.

Could the fact that elected representatives have already built personal relationships with current members of Congress actually be a good thing – as it helps interest groups gain more access on behalf of their members?  Or, would interest groups (and their members) be better off with spokespersons who have no political experience?

Work Cited:

Jordan, G., & Maloney, W. (2007). Democracy and interest groups: Enhancing participation?. Springer.

Writing Requirements

• Minimum of 2 sources cited (assigned readings/online lessons and an outside source)
• APA format for in-text citations and list of references

Response needed for :

The First Amendment to the Constitution guarantees citizens the right to speak freely, to assemble, and to petition the government thus allowing the formation of interest groups. In order to understand the role of lobbyist it is important to identify all interest groups as explained in our lesson this week. Interest groups are private organizations or voluntary associations that seek to influence public policy as a way to protect or advance their interests (Greenberg, 2018). People or firms that share an interest or cause that they are trying to protect or advance with the help of government form interest groups (Greenberg, 2018). Greenberg (2018) explains that there are three different interests groups, private, public, and advocacy. Private interest groups seek to protect or advance the material interests of their members (Greenberg, 2018). Public interest groups work to gain protections or benefits for society at large (Greenberg, 2018). Lastly, advocacy interest groups organize to support a cause or ideology (Greenberg, 2018). Lobbying is effort by an interest or advocacy group to influence the behavior of a public official (Greenberg, 2018). Disturbance theory is a theory positing that interest groups originate with changes in the economic, social, or political environment that threaten the well-being of some segment of the population (Greenberg, 2018). I believe this theory to be true because when big changes in our country are presented we see many protests representing both sides of the matter.

There are two basic types of interest group activity described in our textbook, the inside game and the outside game (Greenberg, 2018). The inside game is a form of lobbying in which representatives of an interest or advocacy group try to persuade legislators, executive branch officials, and/or regulators to support actions favored by that group (Greenberg, 2018). The outside game involves interest group mobilization of public opinion, voters, and important contributors to bring indirect pressure to bear on elected officials (Greenberg, 2018).

Pros:

• Almost everyone can become a lobbyist
• Raises awareness to certain issues or problems
• Helps Business and Union Reps connect to politicians
• Can help strengthen rights of minorities

Cons:

• Costly
• Can lead to flawed political decisions
• Lobbying usually only benefit certain interest groups
• Lobbying can cause more harm than good
• Lobbying can be considered unethical example: when bribes occur

I would like to share some positive outcomes of lobbying from our reading assignment this week. Private interest groups lobbying efforts have had great influence in the increases in federal minimum wage over the past two decades (Greenberg, 2018). Agriculture and agribusinesses have more than held their own over the years through organizations such as the American Farm Bureau Federation and the Farm Machinery Manufacturer’s Association and through scores of commodity groups, including the American Dairy Association and the National Association of Wheat Growers (Greenberg, 2018). Some examples of public interest groups are American Red Cross, The National Organization for Women and The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

I found an article on lobbying that describes a study that provides an explanation for the observed repeated personal interactions between lobbyists, special interests, and policymakers. Policymakers require repeated interactions with both commercial lobbyists and citizen‐donors (special interest groups) to enforce implicit agency contracts (Groll & Ellis, 2017). These contracts offer future political access in return for the delivery of promised financial contributions both by commercial lobbyists and citizen‐donors and they similarly rewardcommercial lobbyists for delivering proposals of a given expected informational quality (Groll & Ellis, 2017). The article goes on to explain that these interactions improve social welfare outcomes. I do not believe that former congress members should be allowed to become lobbyists because of the amount of connections or contacts they are associated with from previously working together. I strongly feel a former congress member’s judgement can be persuaded by money. Although after reading much about this topic, the previous members of congress can still have an impact without registering as a lobbyist.

I hope this post was not too much to read, I understand that most of my post was from the book and sources. It was necessary for me to research more on this lobbying, as I am not knowledgeable on this topic. Hoping to gain an even better insight on this topic from reading all your posts.

Thank you!

References

Greenberg, E., & Page, B. (2018). Revel for The Struggle for Democracy, 2018 Elections and Updates Edition — Access Card (12th ed.). Pearson.