Chapter 14 Flashcards- Alexander Johnson

Question 1

AFL-CIO

Answer 1

A large labor union founded in 1955 by the merging of the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and its one-time rival the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO).

AFL-CIO is made up of fifty-five national and international unions, together representing more than 12 million active and retired workers.

Question 2

American Anti-Slavery Society

Answer 2

A major interest group, founded in 1833, to advocate for the abolition of the institution of slavery throughout the United States.

Frederick Douglass, an escaped slave, was a key leader of the American Anti-Slavery Society, who often spoke at its meetings.

Question 3

American Federation of Labor (AFL)

Answer 3

Founded in 1896, the AFL brought skilled workers from several trades together into stronger national organization for the first time. It merged in 1955 with the Congress of Industrial Organizations to form the AFL-CIO.

Samuel Gompers helped found the American Federation of Labor. The AFL was a new kind of workers’ organization.

Question 4

Christian Coalition

Answer 4

A religious interest group founded in 1989 to advance conservative Christian principles and traditional values in American politics.

Based in Chesapeake, Va., Christian Coalition has about 2 million members and some 2,000 local chapters in 50 states.

Question 5

civic virtue

Answer 5

The tendency to form small-scale associations for the public good.

Civic virtue is often conceived as the dedication of citizens to the common welfare of their community even at the cost of their individual interests.

Question 6

collective good

Answer 6

Something of value that cannot be withheld from a nonmember of a group, for example, a tax write-off or a better environment.

Potential Group members of the collective good are ideologists that share a common interest with interest groups, but are not necessarily involved in them.

Question 7

disturbance theory

Answer 7

The theory that interest groups form a result of changes in the political system.

Interest groups follow the disturbance theory and they form and grow in response to threats.

Question 8

economic interest group

Answer 8

A group with the primary purpose of promoting the financial interests of its members.

Economic interest groups are varied and for and given issue there will be large number of competing interest groups.

Question 9

free rider problem

Answer 9

Potential members who fail to join a group because they get the benefit, or collective good, sought by the group without contributing the effort.

Because of the free-rider problem, public goods are under-provided or not provided at all.

Question 10

Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007

Answer 10

Lobbying reform banning gifts to members of Congress and their staffs, toughening disclosure requirements, and increasing time limits on moving from the federal government to the private sector.

The Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 was enacted by the 110th United States Congress on September 14.

Question 11

interest group

Answer 11

A collection of people or organizations that tries to influence public policy.

Political scientists generally divide interest groups into two categories: economic and noneconomic.

Question 12

Jerry Falwell

Answer 12

A Southern Baptist minister who, in 1978, founded the conservative religious interest group the Moral Majority.

Jerry Falwell was the founding pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church, a megachurch in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Question 13

lobbying

Answer 13

The activities of a group or organization that seek to persuade political leaders to support the group’s position.

Communication to the members of your organization asking them to contact legislators and express an opinion about a specific bill is considered direct lobbying.

Question 14

Lobbying Disclosure Act

Answer 14

A 1995 federal law that employed a strict definition of lobbyist and established strict reporting requirements on the activities of lobbyists.

The Lobbying Disclosure Act was amended substantially by the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007.

Question 15

lobbyist

Answer 15

Interest group representative who seeks to influence legislation that will benefit his or her organization or client through political and/or financial persuasion.

Lobbyists represent just about every American institution and interest group - labor unions, corporations, colleges and universities, churches, charities, environmental groups, senior citizens organizations, and even state, local or foreign governments.

Question 16

Marian Wright Edelman

Answer 16

A lawyer who in 1973 founded the Children’s Defense Fund to protect the rights of the children, particularly those who are members of disadvantaged groups.

Marian Wright Edelman was the first African American woman admitted to The Mississippi Bar She began practicing law with the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund’s Mississippi office, working on racial justice issues connected with the civil rights movement and representing activists during the Mississippi Freedom Summer of 1964.

Question 17

Moral Majority

Answer 17

A conservative religious interest group credited with helping to mobilize conservative Evangelical Christian voters from its founding in 1978 through the presidency of Ronald Reagan (1981-1986).

Although the group disbanded in 1989, the Moral Majority helped to establish the religious right as a force in American politics.

Question 18

National Association of Manufacturers (NAM)

Answer 18

An organization founded in 1895 by manufacturers to combat the growth of organized labor.

The National Association of Manufacturers’ policy issue work is focused in the areas of labor, employment, health care, energy, corporate finance, tax, bilateral trade, multilateral trade, export controls, technology, regulatory and infrastructure policy.

Question 19

National Rifle Association (NRA)

Answer 19

The major gun-rights lobbying group in the United States, which opposes gun control and advances an expansive interpretation of the Second Amendment.

The National Rifle Association of America founded in 1871 is an American nonprofit organization that advocates for gun rights.

Question 20

Pat Robertson

Answer 20

A Southern Baptist minister and television evangelist who ran for president in 1988 and in 1989 founded the conservative religious interest group the Christian Coalition.

Pat Robertson serves as chancellor and CEO of Regent University and chairman of the Christian Broadcasting Network.

Question 21

patron

Answer 21

A person who finances a group or individual activity.

Leonardo da Vinci was offered financial compensation from a high paying patron to paint a portrait of Mona Lisa.

Question 22

pluralist theory

Answer 22

The theory that political power is distributed among a wide array of diverse and competing interest groups.

Members of groups that support the pluralist theory all press for their own preferred policies.

Question 23

Progressive movement

Answer 23

A broad group of political and social activists from the 1890s to the 1920s who opposed corruption in government, supported regulation of monopolies, and sought improvement of socioeconomic conditions.

The main objectives of the Progressive movement were eliminating problems caused by industrialization, urbanization, immigration, and political corruption.

Question 24

political action committee (PAC)

Answer 24

Officially recognized fund-raising organization that represents interest groups and is allowed by federal law to make contributions directly to candidates’ campaigns.

Most political action committees represent business, labor or ideological interests. Political Action committees can give $5,000 to a candidate committee per election..

Question 25

public interest group

Answer 25

An organization that seeks a collective good that if achieved will not selectively and materially benefit group members.

A public interest group named American Civil Liberties Union visits their section on issues before Congress that the ACLU is following and lobbying on.

Question 26

social capital

Answer 26

Cooperative relationships that facilitate the resolution of collective problems.

Social capital includes economic resources that one gains from being part of a network of social relationships, including group membership.

Question 27

The Grange

Answer 27

Founded in 1867 as an educational organization for farmers, The Grange evolved into the first truly national interest group by working to protect the political and economic concerns of farming communities and rural areas.

The Grange and the farmers’ alliances also worked to raise crop prices. They tried to pool their crops to help raise the price they got for them.

Question 28

trade association

Answer 28

A group that represents a specific industry.

Examples of trade associations that focus on a specific industry or sector of an industry are the American Medical Association, American Bar Association, Trial Lawyers Association, American Bankers Association and Consumer Electronics Association.

Question 29

transactions theory

Answer 29

The theory that public policies are the result of narrowly defined exchanges or transactions among political actions.

The transactions theory addresses the importance of companies or firms in a market economy.

Question 30

U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Answer 30

A major pro-business lobbying group founded in 1912.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce usually supports Republican political candidates, though it has occasionally supported conservative Democrats.

Question 31

Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU)

Answer 31

A public interest group created in 1874 with the goal of outlawing the sale of liquor. Its activities included prayer groups, protest marches, lobbying, and the destruction of saloons.

The Women’s Christian Temperance Union movement began in the 1820s, rooted in Protestant churches, led by clergy and prominent laymen, and powered by women volunteers.