Deck 1: Interest Groups: Organizing for Influence

Question 1

An amicus brief

A)is a written document in which a group explains to a court its position on a legal dispute the court is handling
B)is a written document in which an interest group lays out its policy preference for targeted lawmakers.
C)prevents a lobbyist group from making campaign donations to policy makers over a specific issue.
D)provides evidence for prosecutors of an illegal monetary relationship between a lawmaker and an interest group or PAC.
E)prevents PACs from donating more than $5,000 to a single candidate during a primary election.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

An interest group that focuses on policy benefits for senior citizens would be an example of

A)a philosophical interest group.
B)an ideological group.
C)a professional group.
D)a business group.
E)a single-issue group.

Answer 2

E

Question 3

Economic groups have an advantage over non-economic groups because

A)they nearly always have larger memberships.
B)they are organized primarily for political purposes.
C)they have better leadership.
D)they have greater access to financial resources.
E)their members are committed to their causes.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Roughly how many American workers currently belong to unions?

A)one in two
B)one in four
C)one in eight
D)one in six
E)one in ten

Question 5

A basic reason for the existence of so many interest groups in the United States is

A)the American tradition of free association.
B)the extent of diverse interests in American society.
C)America's federal system of government.
D)the separation of powers in American government.
E)All these answers are correct.

Question 6

Economist Mancur Olson concluded that groups

A)exercise too much power in the American system.
B)increase the flexibility of government.
C)can have their benefits reduced by concerted political opposition.
D)are shown to have too much power when examined individually.
E)help the government break away from long-term or previous commitments and apply funding to new problems or issues.

Question 7

The situation in which individuals are tempted not to contribute to a cause because they will get the benefits even if they do not participate is called

A)the size factor.
B)the free-rider problem.
C)the special-interest paradox.
D)the disincentive factor.
E)the zero-sum game.

Question 8

The theory that society's interests are most effectively represented through group action is

A)republicanism.
B)constitutionalism.
C)elitist theory.
D)pluralist theory.
E)interest-group liberalism.

Question 9

Citizens' interest groups are distinguished from economic interest groups by the fact that

A)their leaders are elected by secret ballot of the group's members.
B)their members receive no direct economic benefit from attainment of the group's goals.
C)they do not lobby government officials directly,but rely instead on public service announcements to get their views across to society.
D)they always pursue goals in which there is a high level of agreement among society members.
E)All these answers are correct.

Question 10

The most fully organized interests are those that have which of the following as their primary purpose?

A)agriculture
B)economic activity
C)civil liberties
D)labor reform
E)reform of government

Question 11

"Agency capture" occurs when

A)a regulatory agency funnels money back into the lobbying organizations that are seeking policy changes.
B)regulatory agencies side with the industries they are supposed to regulate rather than with the public.
C)the executive branch takes back control of a regulatory agency by passing regulation to prevent undue influence by lobbying organizations.
D)a regulatory agency must be dismantled because it has become corrupted.
E)an election results in the replacement of an agency's leadership through appointive positions under a new president.

Question 12

Which citizens' group did a Fortune magazine survey rank as the nation's most powerful lobbying group?

A)the NAACP
B)the AFL-CIO
C)the AARP
D)MADD
E)Common Cause

Question 13

Why did Representative Tom DeLay lose his post as House majority leader?

A)He was implicated in a scandal involving campaign donations from lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
B)He was forced out through the leveraging of money by a host of PACs,who opposed his attempts to limit their influence.
C)He was voted out of office when Democrats were able to paint him as an unscrupulous supporter of big business.
D)The major labor unions turned against him and encouraged their supporters to vote him out of office when he opposed their lobbying efforts.
E)He angered the members of the AARP by suggesting that government retirement benefits should be cut.

Question 14

Why have issue networks become more prevalent than iron triangles?

A)the increasing power of corporate lobbying
B)the increasing diversity of interest groups
C)the increasing influence of PACs
D)the instability of candidates' positions
E)the increasing complexity of policy problems

Question 15

Some groups pursue collective goods.A collective good is one that

A)cannot be selectively granted or denied to individuals; it must be shared.
B)is provided by a public service organization.
C)is secured by the president.
D)is secured by Congress.
E)None of these answers is correct.

Question 16

A flaw in pluralism theory is the fact that

A)the interest group system is unrepresentative because some interests are far better organized and more powerful than others.
B)the public interest is never served by policies that promote special interests.
C)larger groups always prevail politically over smaller groups.
D)political parties better represent different interests than do interest groups.
E)All these answers are correct.

Question 17

The Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v.Federal Election Commission (2010)

A)allows corporations and labor unions to spend unlimited funds on campaigns.
B)limits PACs by reducing the amount of money they can raise through contributions by small donors.
C)has forced candidates for office and elected officials to make public the amounts of campaign contributions they have received from PACs and which PACs make those donations.
D)has strengthened the argument that PACs constitute a better system of campaign finance than one based on wealthy donors.
E)has forced corporations and labor unions to legally divorce themselves from the PACs they sponsor.

Question 18

In order to overcome the free-rider problem,non-economic groups have

A)deliberately restricted the size of their membership.
B)joined up with economic groups.
C)convinced government to limit the distribution of public goods to those who have contributed to the group's efforts.
D)used Internet resources and computer-assisted mailing lists to target potential donors.
E)adopted taxes for nonmembers.

Question 19

A purposive incentive is defined as

A)a goal of direct economic gain.
B)the opportunity to contribute to a worthy goal or purpose.
C)a goal benefiting a specific group.
D)any common purpose that brings groups together.
E)corporate profit.

Question 20

According to James Madison,the source of most factions is the

A)unequal distribution of property.
B)American political tradition of association.
C)system of separation of powers in the U.S.
D)spirit of individualism.
E)concept of majority rule.

Question 21

A pluralist could be expected to argue that

A)the presidency is more representative of society's interests than is the Congress.
B)society is best seen as a collection of separate interests.
C)U.S.society is best run by a power elite.
D)most interests are poorly represented through the group process.
E)the judiciary is more representative of society's interests than is the Congress.

Question 22

The support of ________ was critical to passage of a controversial prescription drug program for the elderly in 2003.

A)the AARP
B)Greenpeace
C)the ACLU
D)the NAACP
E)the ABA

Question 23

PACs tend to contribute the most money to

A)incumbents.
B)challengers.
C)Independents.
D)liberal Democrats.
E)liberal Republicans.

Question 24

An informal grouping of officials,lobbyists,and policy specialists who come together temporarily around a policy problem is

A)an iron triangle.
B)an issue network.
C)a caucus.
D)a policy system.
E)an ideological network.

Question 25

Which of the following statements would NOT be accepted by supporters of the pluralist view of interest groups?

A)People's separate interests are a legitimate basis of public policy.
B)The idea of the public interest or the collective interest does not have much meaning in cases where the public is sharply divided in its policy opinions.
C)The opinion of the majority should always prevail in a policy dispute over the opinion of a more intense and directly affected minority.
D)Most interests benefit from the workings of the group system,which is a reason to support a policy process that is responsive to groups.
E)Public policy should represent the diversity that exists in society.

Question 26

The largest number of PACs are those associated with

A)single-issue groups,such as environmental groups and right-to-life groups.
B)labor.
C)business.
D)agriculture.
E)education.

Question 27

A main difference between iron triangles and issue networks is that

A)an iron triangle includes members of the legislative,executive,and judicial branches,while issue networks bypass the judicial branch.
B)issue networks involve a stable group of bureaucrats,legislators,and lobbyists,while iron triangles exclude lobbyists in an attempt to reach impartial decisions.
C)issue networks are generally less stable than iron triangles,in that the members of an issue network may change as the issue develops.
D)issue networks,being less formal,rely on outside lobbying only,while iron triangles use inside lobbying only.
E)All these answers are correct.

Question 28

The influence of interest groups through the courts occurs through

A)initiating lawsuits.
B)lobbying for certain judges to be appointed to the bench.
C)outside lobbying only.
D)PACs.
E)both initiating lawsuits and lobbying for certain judges to be appointed to the bench.

Question 29

There are more than ________ political action committees (PACs)in the United States.

A)40
B)400
C)4,000
D)400,000
E)4,000,000

Question 30

Effective inside lobbying is based upon

A)countering the aims of other groups.
B)providing useful and persuasive information to key officials.
C)mobilizing the group's members.
D)bribing or threatening officials.
E)using the media to exert pressure.

Question 31

James Madison argued

A)against all interest groups.
B)for the advocacy of self-interest free from all systems of restraint.
C)for regulation of interests through a governing system of checks and balances.
D)for the replacement of interest groups by formal political parties.
E)for a powerful judiciary.

Question 32

James Madison's solution to the problem of factions (special interests)has,in the modern policy process,actually contributed to the problem by

A)suppressing the claims of special interests,thereby making it more difficult for them to get their opinions heard by officials.
B)resulting in a fragmentation of authority among policymakers,thereby providing groups more opportunities to get their way.
C)eroding the strength of political parties,thereby increasing the opportunity for group influence.
D)weakening the legislative branch,thereby allowing groups to bully Congress into accepting their demands.
E)eroding the power of the mass media,thereby increasing the opportunity for group influence.

Question 33

In acknowledging the dilemma inherent in group activity,James Madison

A)argued that the free-rider problem would hurt some groups more than others.
B)claimed that government could listen to all groups,but should only enact policies that promote the interests of majority groups.
C)worried that government would be overly dominated by groups,but recognized that a free society is obliged to permit the advocacy of self-interest.
D)argued that government must restrict the activities of groups,so that political parties could act as the major instrument of democracy.
E)All these answers are correct.

Question 34

Political scientist Theodore Lowi has questioned pluralist theory by suggesting that

A)special interests should never receive benefits from government.
B)there is no concept of the public interest in a system that gives special interests the ability to determine the policies affecting them.
C)policies that favor a series of minorities are inherently fairer than policies that ignore small groups in favor of a majority.
D)the sum of people's special interests is a rough approximation of society's collective interest.
E)Madisonian theory has created a perfect balance of special interest and common good.

Question 35

Theodore Lowi's theory of interest-group liberalism

A)constitutes a partial and wrongful abdication by government of its authority over policy.
B)argues that lawmakers are rightly prevented from using government to promote group interests.
C)posits that interest groups result in an efficient use of society's resources.
D)describes the effect of groups on policy,resulting in a system of rule by majorities.
E)deals with the tendency of officials to support the policy demands of the interest group or groups that have a special stake in a policy.

Question 36

Outside lobbying does NOT include

A)developing and maintaining close contacts with policymakers.
B)the use of campaign contributions to legislators who favor the interest group.
C)cultivating favorable coverage from the news media.
D)targeting group resources on key election races.
E)rousing citizens to contact their elected officials and express their support.

Question 37

Grassroots lobbying is based on the assumption that officials will respond to

A)well-reasoned policy arguments.
B)the opportunity for extensive media publicity.
C)moral pleas.
D)the efforts of party organizations.
E)pressure from constituents.

Question 38

Which of the following is roughly the amount that was spent on lobbying in the United States in 2009?

A)$250 billion
B)$10 billion
C)$350 million
D)$35 billion
E)$3.5 billion

Question 39

Which of the following is true of employment in lobbying firms by members of Congress?

A)It is very rare for a member of Congress to become a lobbyist because of the negative stigma involved.
B)Most members of Congress join lobbying firms immediately after leaving Congress.
C)They are prohibited by law from lobbying Congress for a set period of time after leaving office.
D)Members of Congress are prohibited by law from joining the lobbying profession.
E)Many members of Congress were lobbyists prior to becoming elected representatives.

Question 40

The term iron triangle refers to

A)a tightly-knit set of lobbying groups.
B)the relationship between the Congress,the military,and defense contractors.
C)a small and informal but relatively stable set of bureaucrats,legislators,and lobbyists who are concerned with promoting a particular interest.
D)the strategy of lobbying all three branches of government simultaneously.
E)a corrupt relationship among the president,Congress,and the Supreme Court.

Question 41

Another name for an interest group is

A)pressure group.
B)cabal.
C)political party.
D)coalition.
E)constituency.

Question 42

Under federal law,PACs can contribute no more than ________ per candidate in a primary election.

A)$1,000
B)$5,000
C)$25,000
D)$50,000
E)$100,000

Question 43

The dominant labor interest group is

A)the Teamster's Union.
B)United Auto Workers.
C)the AFL-CIO.
D)the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
E)None of these answers is correct.

Question 44

Which of the following organizations is NOT an example of a single-issue group?

A)Sierra Club
B)National Rifle Association
C)Izaak Walton League
D)right-to-life groups
E)MoveOn.org

Question 45

Members of the ________ generate more mail to Congress than any other group.

A)NRA
B)ACLU
C)NAACP
D)AARP
E)NEA

Question 46

________ wrote that "Liberty is to faction what air is to fire."

A)James Madison
B)Alexis de Tocqueville
C)Thomas Jefferson
D)Theodore Lowi
E)Theodore Roosevelt

Question 47

The limits of interest groups' influence might be gauged by the Democratic backlash against the _______,which tried to block the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1993.

A)ACLU
B)Sierra Club
C)Izaak Walton League
D)AARP
E)AFL-CIO

Question 48

What is the importance of the distinction between private goods (individual goods)and collective goods (public goods)in assessing why some interests are more highly organized than others? What type of group particularly benefits from this situation?

Question 49

Define economic groups.Identify four main types of economic interest groups and the constituencies they serve.
D.C.,concentrate their activities on policies that are concerned with business,such as tax,tariff,and regulatory decisions.Business interests are also represented by associations such as the National Association of Manufacturers and the U.S.Chamber of Commerce.Labor groups seek to promote policies that benefit workers in general and union members in particular.They have been politically active for a long time,and the AFL-CIO is the largest labor group.Farm groups represent various segments of the farm community; for example,the Farm Bureau promotes agribusiness and large farms,while the Farmers Union promotes the interests of smaller family farms.Professional groups,such as the American Medical Association,represent various professions and attempt to influence policy on their behalf.

Question 50

The citizens of ________ are most actively involved in interest groups and community causes.

A)the United States
B)Germany
C)Italy
D)France
E)Great Britain

Question 51

In the dynamics of an iron triangle,what benefit do interest groups provide to friendly bureaucratic agencies?

A)services for constituents
B)travel funds
C)campaign contributions
D)administration of mutually beneficial policies
E)lobbying support for agency programs

Question 52

The air we breathe is an example of a

A)private good.
B)negative externality.
C)material good.
D)mass-produced good.
E)collective good.

Question 53

Define citizens'(or noneconomic)interest groups and identify the types of noneconomic interest groups and the constituencies they serve.

Question 54

Identify the defining characteristics of an interest group.How do interest groups differ from political parties?

Question 55

Most lobbyists receive support from elected officials in direct exchange for

A)money.
B)information.
C)bribery.
D)coercion.
E)deception.

Question 56

Economist Mancur Olson refers to what aspect of interest groups as "the size factor"?

A)Larger interest groups are able to draw on greater financial resources,which makes them more capable of getting the ear of lawmakers and thus achieving policy change.
B)The interests of groups with large memberships would typically prevail over the interests of smaller groups.
C)Small groups are ordinarily more united on policy issues and often have more resources,enabling them to win out more often than large groups.
D)The smaller an interest group,the more likely that its motivating issue will be subsumed by the agenda of a larger interest group.
E)Small interest groups can often enhance their bargaining power by linking themselves to the agenda of a larger interest group that has greater resources.

Question 57

Compare iron triangles and issue networks.

Question 58

About ________ percent of people who regularly listen to National Public Radio do not donate money to their local station.

A)10
B)30
C)50
D)70
E)90

Question 59

Compare outside lobbying and inside lobbying.

Question 60

During his visit to this country in the 1830s,Alexis de Tocqueville described the United States as "a nation of _______."

A)freeloaders
B)loners
C)joiners
D)fighters
E)stalwarts

Question 61

Discuss interest-group liberalism and indicate how Madison's constitutional solution for controlling groups has itself become part of the problem in American politics.