Deck 11: Groups and Interests

Question 1

When a coalition of credit card companies forms an interest group called the Partnership to Protect Consumer Credit, this suggests that

A) credit card companies are interested in the public good.
B) private interests are hiding behind the ideals of public interests.
C) public interest groups are now actively involving private corporations.
D) the free-rider problem does not apply to private corporations.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

It is difficult for political scientists to categorize unrepresented interests because

A) there are no constitutional means for unorganized interests to compete for attention.
B) there are no organizations that can present their identities and demands.
C) there are no measurements of interests and needs outside of representation.
D) these interests often want to stay hidden from public view.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

What are political parties more capable of doing than interest groups?

A) raising money
B) providing purposive benefits
C) articulating a clear and persuasive ideology
D) organizing people on a mass scale

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Labor groups represent ________ percent of the total number of interest groups registered to lobby in Washington.

A) 2
B) 12
C) 32
D) 52

Question 5

The National Governor's Association is a good example of a ________.

A) public-sector interest group
B) professional association
C) political action committee
D) public interest group

Question 6

________ once wrote that "America was a nation of joiners."

A) James Madison
B) Alexis de Tocqueville
C) David Truman
D) Robert Dahl

Question 7

The 2012 debate over the antipiracy bills known as SOPA and PIPA demonstrates that

A) local governments are more open to the influence of interest groups than state governments.
B) state governments are more open to the influence of interest groups than the federal government.
C) large groups that are well represented in Washington are almost never defeated in political struggle.
D) even large groups that are well represented in Washington are sometimes defeated in political struggle.

Question 8

How the Constitution balances the threat posed by organized interests with the need for liberty is discussed in the

A) Federalist Papers, no. 7.
B) Federalist Papers, no. 10.
C) Federalist Papers, no. 51.
D) Antifederalist Papers, no. 78.

Question 9

Public interest groups differ from other types of interest groups in that

A) they claim to serve the common good, not just their own particular interests.
B) they were the first political associations to use the strategy of direct mailing.
C) they were the first group to abandon lobbying and take up only grassroots activism.
D) unlike other interest groups, their status is like that of a charity, not a political organization.

Question 10

What is the primary variable for predicting the likelihood of joining an interest group?

A) having an interest shared by others
B) having a higher income and education
C) already being a member of a political party
D) the region of the country in which an individual lives

Question 11

The Christian Coalition is a(n) ________ group.

A) public interest
B) ideological
C) labor
D) business

Question 12

Which of the following statements about political parties and interest groups is most accurate?

A) Political parties have remained nearly unchanged throughout American history, while interest groups have become considerably less numerous, active, and influential in recent years.
B) Both political parties and interest groups have become much less active and influential in recent years.
C) Political parties have become more influential in recent years, while interest groups have become less numerous, active, and influential.
D) Political parties have declined in influence in recent years, while interest groups have become more numerous, active, and influential.

Question 13

Organized interest groups enhance American democracy by

A) fielding large numbers of electable candidates.
B) financing large numbers of election campaigns.
C) empowering less-potent segments of society.
D) representing the interests of large numbers of people and encouraging political participation.

Question 14

Interest groups are concerned with the ________ of government, while political parties are concerned with the ________ of government.

A) values; goals
B) membership; authority
C) policies; personnel
D) legitimacy; power

Question 15

James Madison called an interest group a ________.

A) mob
B) faction
C) plutocracy
D) social movement

Question 16

The Teamsters and the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) are examples of ________.

A) public interest groups
B) business groups
C) labor groups
D) ideological groups

Question 17

The best description of the ideal of pluralism is that

A) the public good should always trump individual interests.
B) interest groups should be free to compete for governmental influence.
C) interest groups are factions that endanger liberty.
D) democracy is best served by legalizing but regulating the influence of interest groups.

Question 18

Grandparents, tall people, and undergraduates are all examples of ________.

A) political parties
B) political action committees
C) potential interest groups
D) public interest groups

Question 19

Members of interest groups in the United States are typically people

A) with higher levels of income and education.
B) from the lower socioeconomic levels.
C) who work in manual labor and unskilled occupations.
D) who identify as Democrats.

Question 20

The Sierra Club is a(n) ________ group.

A) public interest
B) ideological
C) labor
D) business

Question 21

A membership association is a group

A) that accepts anyone as a member.
B) in which members play an important role in the daily activities and administration.
C) in which members vote directly for their leaders.
D) in which only members may receive benefits.

Question 22

The free-rider problem occurs because

A) members of Congress are presented with many opportunities to amend a piece of legislation.
B) the benefits of a group's actions are available only to a specific segment of society.
C) the benefits of a group's actions are broadly available and cannot be denied to nonmembers.
D) members of Congress listen only to organized interest groups and not to public opinion polls.

Question 23

The collection of grassroots online activist organizations that have redefined membership and fund-raising practices and streamlined staff structure are referred to as the

A) 527 committees.
B) pluralists.
C) Super PACs.
D) netroots.

Question 24

Why is it important for interest groups to offer selective benefits?

A) It is necessary to limit the extent of the free-rider problem.
B) If they do not, people will join political parties instead.
C) Selective benefits are the only way to measure the success of an interest group.
D) If they do not, people will accuse the groups of being antidemocratic.

Question 25

"Nader's Raiders" were a(n)

A) environmental protection group in the 1970s that fought for carbon emission reductions.
B) consumer advocacy group in the 1960s that fought for laws and regulations to improve product safety.
C) prochoice group in the 1980s that sought to protect federally funded access to abortions for women in the South.
D) peace group in the 1960s that fought for a reduction in the number of nuclear weapons worldwide.

Question 26

The solidary benefits of interest groups include ________.

A) friendship and consciousness raising
B) special services and goods
C) information and money
D) identification with the purpose or ideology of the group

Question 27

The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) has approximately ________ members today.

A) 38,000
B) 338,000
C) 3,800,000
D) 38,000,000

Question 28

Which of the following is a theoretical assumption of pluralism?

A) Competition among interests will produce balance with all interests regulating each other.
B) Competition among interests will produce extreme public policy with one interest dominating all others.
C) Only some interests should be free to compete for influence in the United States.
D) All interests are not equally free to compete for influence in the United States.

Question 29

The free-rider phenomenon is

A) more problematic in very large groups.
B) more problematic in very small groups.
C) not affected in any way by the size of the group in question.
D) not related to groups in any way because it is an individual-level problem.

Question 30

A ________ exists when paid staff conduct most of the daily business of a group.

A) staff organization
B) free-rider group
C) lobbyist firm
D) 527 committee

Question 31

________ have been one of AARP's most effective methods of mobilizing thousands of its members for political action.

A) Robocalls
B) Direct mailings
C) Email lists
D) "Telephone trees"

Question 32

A criticism of interest group pluralism is

A) its inherent propensity for compromise, the character of which tends to be antidemocratic.
B) its class bias in favor of those with greater financial resources.
C) that its ideals are too closely associated with Marxist-Leninist ideology and are therefore unacceptable to the majority of Americans.
D) that it gives too much influence to religious organizations and therefore threatens the separation of church and state.

Question 33

Successful interest groups quickly become ________.

A) bureaucratized
B) corrupted
C) outdated
D) rich

Question 34

When membership in an organization allows for a reduction in the price of museum tickets, it is called a ________.

A) solidary benefit
B) promotion offer
C) material benefit
D) purposive benefit

Question 35

Many interest groups are initially organized because

A) most state-level government agencies will only negotiate policy implementation with organized groups.
B) funding opportunities provided by the federal bureaucracy encourage collective action.
C) a political entrepreneur with a strong commitment to a particular set of goals believes that a group will promote and enhance his or her goals and political influence.
D) a politician has lost an election and wants to challenge the results.

Question 36

National defense is a good example of a

A) material benefit.
B) collective good.
C) solidary benefit.
D) purposive benefit.

Question 37

Rather than offering its members ________ benefits, netroots associations often offer their members ________ benefits.

A) purposive; material and informational
B) informational; material and purposive
C) material; informational and purposive
D) informational and purposive; material

Question 38

A benefit that is sought by an interest group and that once achieved cannot be denied to nonmembers is called a ________.

A) free rider
B) collective good
C) solidary benefit
D) purposive benefit

Question 39

One way that the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) has been effective at overcoming the free-rider problem is by providing ________ benefits to its members.

A) selective
B) elective
C) free-rider
D) public good

Question 40

If a person enjoys the benefits of a group's collective efforts but does not contribute to those efforts, he or she is called a ________.

A) citizen
B) subject
C) free rider
D) lobbyist

Question 41

What major national-level development happened in the late nineteenth century?

A) The Constitution was ratified.
B) The Civil War ended.
C) Federal officials attempted to regulate more aspects of interstate commerce and combat monopolies.
D) The New Deal policies were implemented.

Question 42

The major organizational factors shared by most interest groups are

A) very close links with the national news media, direct ties to a member of Congress, a headquarters in Washington, D.C., and members.
B) very close links with the national news media, connections with Hollywood, direct ties to the president of the United States, and members.
C) leadership, money, an agency or office, and members.
D) leadership, a rigid hierarchical structure, access to loans from the Federal Reserve, and members.

Question 43

The liberal-leaning MoveOn.org and the conservative-leaning Americans for Prosperity are examples of

A) iron triangles.
B) issue networks.
C) netroots political associations.
D) legacy organizations.

Question 44

Another name for lobbying is ________.

A) stalking
B) mobilizing
C) petitioning
D) litigating

Question 45

The New Politics movement gave rise to ________ groups.

A) ideological
B) partisan
C) labor
D) public interest

Question 46

Which of the following issues is part of the agenda of the New Politics movement?

A) telecommunications deregulation
B) occupational health and safety legislation
C) industrial deregulation
D) nuclear disarmament

Question 47

A ________ is the best example of an informational benefit provided by many interest groups.

A) consciousness-raising workshop
B) free T-shirt
C) newsletter
D) health insurance program

Question 48

Which of the following statements about netroots associations and traditional interest groups is most accurate?

A) While most traditional interest groups are focused on a single issue, netroots associations are often issue generalists that have a wide umbrella of issues for which they lobby.
B) While most netroots associations are focused on a single issue, traditional interest groups are often issue generalists that have a wide umbrella of issues for which they lobby.
C) Both traditional interest groups and netroots associations maintain a large number of offices in Washington, D.C., and other regional locations.
D) While most netroots associations maintain a large number of offices in Washington, D.C., and other regional locations, most traditional interest groups do not.

Question 49

Approximately ________ lobbyists are currently registered with Congress.

A) 1,200
B) 4,500
C) 12,000
D) 19,000

Question 50

What is the most important and beneficial resource that lobbyists provide government officials?

A) money
B) information
C) campaign workers
D) legal assistance

Question 51

Since the 1930s, the number and scale of interest groups at the national level has ________.

A) dramatically increased
B) experienced relatively modest growth
C) remained relatively stagnant
D) experienced relatively modest decline

Question 52

Netroots groups are less expensive to organize than traditional interest groups because they

A) do not provide any selective benefits to their members.
B) spend much less time communicating with their members and much more time lobbying policy makers.
C) have a streamlined staff structure with fewer staff who often work from virtual offices.
D) are always run entirely by volunteers who take no salary.

Question 53

A full-page, fully paid spread in the New York Times publicizing a major oil company is best described as ________.

A) going public
B) lobbying
C) institutional advertising
D) an issue network

Question 54

Lobbying is

A) an attempt by an individual or group to influence the passage of legislation by exerting indirect pressure, through advertisements and media coverage, on members of Congress or a state legislature.
B) an attempt by an individual or group to influence the passage of legislation by exerting direct pressure on members of Congress or a state legislature.
C) an attempt by an individual or group to influence the passage of legislation by exerting indirect pressure, through phone calls or emails, on members of Congress or a state legislature.
D) the act of working on a re-election campaign.

Question 55

The increased number and importance of interest groups

A) causes a subsequent expansion in government.
B) is a response to an increase in the size and activity of government.
C) is a response to a decrease in the size and activity of government.
D) is due to the decline in the U.S. multiparty system.

Question 56

The practice of lobbying is protected by ________.

A) the First Amendment
B) state and federal laws dating from the 1930s
C) internal rules of Congress
D) a 1961 Supreme Court decision

Question 57

The Administrative Procedure Act

A) requires agencies to create opportunities for public comments before implementing new rules and regulations.
B) permits interest groups to spend an unlimited amount of money on issue advocacy during a campaign.
C) allows former agency officials to work for the industries they had regulated within six months of leaving government service.
D) extends First Amendment protection to interest groups trying to lobby executive agencies.

Question 58

Which of the following groups is most likely to belong to the New Politics movement?

A) blue-collar workers whose formative experience was the Great Depression
B) upper-middle-class professionals, for whom the civil rights and antiwar movements of the 1960s were key experiences
C) conservative evangelical southerners reacting to the cultural changes of the 1960s
D) recent immigrants to the United States

Question 59

Social media are sometimes called the "weapon of the weak" because they

A) are often used to attack or harass members of marginalized groups.
B) allow small groups with limited resources to send their message across the nation and even around the world.
C) are never used by political leaders or people in positions of power.
D) rarely succeed in exerting any impact on political debates.

Question 60

In the lobbying world, to be "Microsofted" means that a company has

A) become vulnerable to adverse legislation and investigation as a result of failing to lobby the federal government.
B) only lobbied members of one political party, who have just lost their majority.
C) lobbied only the federal government, opening itself up to adverse actions by state governments.
D) allowed other companies to become free riders on its costly lobbying efforts.

Question 61

Parties with a direct interest in a regulatory rule or decision are often called ________.

A) amicus curiae
B) stakeholders
C) lobbyists
D) iron triangles

Question 62

Which of the following groups has had the greatest success with a strategy of litigation?

A) National Chamber of Commerce
B) National Rifle Association
C) National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
D) Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Question 63

Which of the following was eliminated as a result of 2002 campaign finance reforms?

A) political action committees (PACs)
B) soft money
C) laws limiting the amount a candidate may spend of his or her personal fortune
D) interest group lobbying

Question 64

The ________ regularly uses litigation to challenge state and federal laws that restrict the rights of individuals and groups.

A) New Politics Movement
B) Tea Party
C) Department of Justice
D) American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)

Question 65

________ is a strategy that attempts to mobilize the widest and most favorable climate of opinion.

A) Litigation
B) Creating a "war room"
C) Creating an iron triangle
D) Going public

Question 66

Two laws that have played an important role in opening the bureaucratic process to interest group influence are the

A) 1995 Lobbying Disclosure Act and the Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990.
B) Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990 and the Administrative Procedure Act of 1946.
C) 1946 Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act and the 1995 Lobbying Disclosure Act.
D) 1946 Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act and the Administrative Procedure Act of 1946.

Question 67

An iron triangle is made up of an alliance between

A) a legislative committee, an executive agency, and the federal courts.
B) the federal courts, the state courts, and interest groups.
C) a legislative committee, an interest group, and an executive agency.
D) the media, a legislative committee, and the federal courts.

Question 68

Most initiative campaigns today are sponsored by

A) candidates for political office who see it as a way to engage in money swapping.
B) issue networks that want to change government policies without attracting attention from the public.
C) citizens who care deeply about a given issue.
D) interest groups seeking to circumvent legislative opposition to their goals.

Question 69

A loose, informal relationship of public officials, interest groups, and activists who are all concerned with the same policies is called ________.

A) an iron triangle
B) a membership association
C) the New Politics movement
D) an issue network

Question 70

________ was an important Washington lobbyist who was indicted in 2005 on charges of violating federal lobbying laws.

A) Valerie Plame
B) Jack Abramoff
C) Paul Wolfowitz
D) Karl Rove

Question 71

The most important attempt to limit the influence of lobbyists in recent years was the

A) USA PATRIOT Act.
B) 1995 Lobbying Disclosure Act.
C) indictment of Jack Abramoff.
D) Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990.

Question 72

________ occurs when interest groups generate phony letters, emails, and phone calls in order to resemble a grassroots movement.

A) Sandlot ball
B) Astroturf lobbying
C) Populism
D) Hardball politics

Question 73

Interest groups use litigation as a strategy of influence by

A) filing amicus curiae briefs, financing lawsuits, and bringing a suit on behalf of the group.
B) directly lobbying judges, using direct-mail solicitations, and making campaign contributions to members of Congress.
C) engaging in institutional advertising, activating issue networks, and directly lobbying judges.
D) working with 527 committees, directly lobbying judges, and engaging in institutional advertising.

Question 74

Which of the following Supreme Court cases illustrates the use of litigation by an interest group?

A) Roe v. Wade (1973)
B) Webster v. Reproductive Health Services (1989)
C) Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)
D) United States v. Nixon (1974)

Question 75

A political action committee (PAC) can contribute ________ to any candidate for federal office, provided it contributes to at least five different federal candidates each year.

A) $500
B) $5,000
C) $50,000
D) $500,000

Question 76

The Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990 was designed to

A) forbid lobbying of administrative agencies.
B) reduce the number of lawsuits by encouraging interest groups to solve conflicts with administrative agencies through mediation.
C) encourage administrative agencies to engage in direct and open negotiations with affected interests when developing new regulations.
D) eliminate iron triangles.

Question 77

In 2014, there were approximately ________ political action committees (PACs) in the United States.

A) 150
B) 1,500
C) 5,000
D) 15,000

Question 78

A grassroots lobbying campaign occurs when

A) an interest group mobilizes its members and their families throughout the country to write their representatives in support of the group's position.
B) a spontaneous show of political support for a particular position manifests itself.
C) interest groups organize to support a dark-horse presidential candidate.
D) an interest group buys advertisements in newspapers around the country in order to publicize an issue.

Question 79

Interest groups are permitted to spend as much money as they want on issue advocacy during a campaign season, as long as they

A) do not coordinate their efforts with a candidate's own campaign organization.
B) are willing to publicize their membership lists.
C) present both sides of the issue in their issue advocacy ads.
D) do not employ any person who has formerly worked on a political campaign.

Question 80

In recent years, the religious right has had a great effect on American politics through ________.

A) grassroots mobilization
B) gaining access
C) campaign financing
D) iron triangles