Interest groups Flashcards
3 factors influencing US PG success with examples
Resources/ funding (2007 NRA had a budget over $200m, ACLU has resources to bring cases to court, appearing in Supreme Court only less than the DoJ)
Size/ membership/ organisation (American civil liberties union ACLU has 1.8m members, 300 attorneys) - NRA has over 4m members
Political climate/public support- sierra club had a favourable climate in 2020 as Biden wanted environmental protection, likely to fall out of favour under trump. NRA gained 100k members in 18 days following sandy hook shooting despite its controversial position calling for armed guards in schools
US Pressure group litigation examples
ACLU and NAACP worked together on Brown v Board of Education which ruled segregation in schools unconstitutional
2017 ACLU won Gloucester county school board v CG against discrimination regarding trans rights in Virginia
2010 citizens united v FEC found that 2002 ban on independent expenditure by corporations was unconstitutional so SuperPACs could be set up
US PG methods
Litigation
Protests
Lobbying
Grassroots action (2020 sierra club members sent 20m texts to voters)
Factors limiting US PG success
Political climate
Resources
Do their aims and methods align with those of the government and public?
Internal conflicts( US population more partisan so this feeds through to PGs)
NRA 2016 donation to Trump campaign
30 million
NRA Factors for success
- large membership and organisation at 5 million
- well funded, receiving millions from gun companies
- effective at framing the debate around freedom and liberty rather than safety
- effective lobbyists, pressuring legislators using scorecards and rating system
-effective at litigation, bringing a lawsuit which enabled states to decide how they follow the 1993 Brady Act- so states don’t have to do background checks
NRA Factors for failure
- political climate change - 54% of Americans want gun control
- less favourable climate with democrats- 2022 Bipartisan Safer Communities Act increased requirement for what background checks must contain
- voters unlikely to vote solely on the basis of scorecards/ ratings
Do US pressure groups help or hinder democracy (essay plan)
1) Pluralism- often both sides of a polarised issue have well resourced interest groups behind them eg Emily’s list pro choice vs Susan B Anthony list pro life therefore they cancel out
VS
Elitism- wealthy interest groups buy more influence eg NRA spent over $50 million campaigning for Trump in 2016
2) Interest groups help democracy by enabling free speech and checking overmighty govt eg litigation ensures law upheld
VS
Interest groups lack legitimacy to challenge elected government, checks and balances already exist so it is not their function. Methods may hinder democracy eg NAACP organised sit ins in North Carolina state legislature and disrupted proceedings which was illegal
3) prevent tyranny of the majority by representing minority interests eg NAACP represents black people eg Brown v Board of Education. This protection of minorities is essential for democracy (JS Mill’s argument).
VS
lead to tyranny of the minority over the majority by over representing wealthy or influential minorities eg NRA helped to defeat stronger gun laws after 2012 Sandy Hook school shootings, despite a majority of Americans consistently polling in support of gun reform
US vs UK pgs differences essay plan
1) access points- federalism vs unitary. Weak party discipline vs strong whips system. Govt majority means pgs don’t lobby mps instead they lobby excecutive
2) electioneering/ campaign finance.
Weak regulation (since citizens united) vs strong regulation eg PPERA or 1970s return of money donated to labour by society for abolition of cruel sports. So 2017 Uk election cost around 47 million whereas 2016 US election cost billions
3) judicial differences. Youth vs old court, codified vs uncodified/parliamentary sovereignty (differences in strike down powers), neutrality and independence from independent vs political appointment. Use of Amicus briefs (2015 obergerfel v hodges gay marriage case 148 amicus briefs coming from both sides)
ACLU example 2025
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), has filed a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s ban on asylum claims
ACLU example 2025
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), has filed a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s ban on asylum claims
Example of iron triangle in defence
2019 1/3 of senate appropriations defence subcommittee members owned significant shares in defence contractors
It’s their job to decide how much the us dept of defence spends military contractors so they directly profit from awarding contracts to companies they have a stake in
The honest leadership and open government act 2007
Limited revolving door by introducing a 2 year cool off period between leaving politics and entering lobbying
