Chapter 11 Day 1- Interest Groups- Aim: How do Interest Groups shape American politics?

Do Now-

PAIR/SHARE 1) How are interest groups portrayed in the cartoon? 2) Does the cartoonist favor them?

• Defining Interest Groups • An organization of people with shared policy goals entering the policy process at several points to try to achieve those goals. Interest groups pursue their goals in many arenas.

• Political Parties fight election battles, Interest Groups don’t - but they may choose sides.

• Interest Groups are policy specialists, Political Parties are policy generalists.

Difference?

Theories of Interest Group Politics

• Pluralist Theory • Elite Theory • Hyperpluralist Theory

Theories of Interest Group Politics - Pluralism • Definition: • Politics is mainly a competition among groups, each one pressing for its own preferred policies.

• Many centers of power and many diverse, competing groups.

• No group wins or loses all the time. WHY NOT?

• Groups provide the key link between the people and the government. Pos or Neg?

Theories of Interest Group Politics Pluralism

• Continued • Groups provide a key link between people and government.

• Groups compete.

• No one group is likely to become too dominant.

• Groups usually play by the “rules of the game.” • Groups weak in one resource can use another.

Theories of Interest Group Politics Elitism

• Definition: • Societies are divided along class lines and an upper-class elite rules, regardless of the formal niceties of governmental organization.

• Numerous groups mean nothing, power is not equally divided among them - some have much more.

• The largest corporations hold the most power.

Theories of Interest Group Politics Elitism

• Continued • Elite power is strengthened by a system of interlocking directorates of these corporations and other institutions.

• Corporate elites are willing to lose the minor policy battles, but work to win the major policy issues in their favor.

• Lobbying is a problem because it benefits the few at the expense of the many.

Theories of Interest Group[ Politics - Elitism Perceptions of the Dominance of Big Interests