Lobbying Flashcards
What are professional lobbyists?
-expensive lobbying firms
-pressure groups with sufficient financial resources use professional lobbying firms
Where are there lobbying firms located?
-clustered around ‘K-Street’
-Washington DC
What is ‘K-Street’?
-the ‘K-Street corridor of influence’
How much was spent on lobbying firms in 2019?
-over $3.47 billion spent on federal lobbying
What is an example of this?
-2019 company + business PGs lobbied gov regarding Trumps new trade deal with Mexico + Canada
What was his trade deal concerning?
-price controls on medical drugs
-which pharmaceutical companies opposed
What is the revolving door syndrome?
-lobbying firms hire lobbyists previously worked in executive branch or congress
-firms take advantage of ready made contacts
Why do they do this?
-former employees of federal agencies etc. often find good jobs as lobbyists capitalising on connections forged while in public service
What is an example of administrations being affected by the revolving door?
-Obama had 17% of his administration go through revolving door
-Biden only 2.33%
What is an example of a high profile revolver?
-Eugene Scalia
-Secretary of labor 2019
What did Scalia do?
-first worked for W.Bush before lobbying for US chamber of commerce
-represented companies like Chevron, Facebook and Goldman Sachs
How is the White House an access point? - 3
-lobbyists engage directly or indirectly with executive office
-incl. pres, senior advisors or executive agencies
What is a key part of the White House being an access point point?
-building relations with key White House officials, senior WH staff, advisors or pres
-to advocate their interests
What is an example of this?
-the 2009-10 ACA
-where PhRMA saw opportunity shape legislations as lobbyists worked close with key WH officials including senior advisor Emanuel the WH chief of staff
What does a white house chief of staff do?
-gatekeeper to pres - controls access to pres
-advisors to pres - strategic advice on policy
-manager of WH staff - oversees work of senior staff etc.
What did the PhRMA do to influence the act?
-agreed to support ACA publicly
-spent $80b over a decade to reduce prescription costs for seniors
What was the impact of this?
-ACA enacted 2010 with provisions that reflected some PhRMA policies
What is another access point for lobbyists?
-the Supreme Court
How do pressure groups lobby the SC?
-through amicus briefs
What are amicus briefs?
-set out specific evidence or research a PG hopes will influence justices of specific case
How do they work?
-PGs submit info to court cases with hope of influencing outcome
-can involved lawyers write briefs on behalf as PGs don’t need to be directly involved
What is an example of this?
-in Dobbs v Jackson Women’s health organisation 2022 that overturned Roe v Wade
-interest groups submitted briefs supporting or opposing the law
What amicus briefs were submitted?
-pro-life America argued law wrongly decided
-US constitution doesn’t explicitly protect right to abortion + so state legislatures should overturn as unconstitutional
How is lobbying good for democracy? - 4
-the first amendment states the right ‘to petition for redress of grievances’
-not explicitly stating lobbying but similar
How does political pluralism reinforce this?
-right to induce politicians take account of broad range of ideas across society
What is an example of this?
-americans united for life campaign - pro life
-planned parenthood - pro choice
What’s the gov role in political pluralism?
-hear both sides - healthy for democracy
-PGs provide opportunities for participation e.g. in lobbying gov for range of interests
How do insider and outsider groups for in to lobbying being good for democracy?
-insider = ties to gov
-outsider = encourage public pressure
What do elitist perspectives say?
-the US has the ‘best democracy money can buy’
