The Effects of Pressure Groups on the Government Before deciding whether pressure groups democratise government or make them more effective, it is essential to define what a pressure groups consists of. A modern democratic society involves active citizenship, an open government, the right to vote over the age of 18 years, community, free speech, participation and pluralism. Although elections provide an effective opportunity for people to play a part in politics they are only held once every four years, therefore pressure groups provide continuous involvement in politics. Pressure groups provide an open freedom for citizens, especially minority groups. When like-minded individuals organise events such as demonstrations, campaigns and petitions, governments have no option but to sit up and take notice. Moreover, as pressure groups are based on a single issue, which a large group of people support, they can put their time and effort into being heard by the government. In the USA however, the term “pressure group” is not favoured amongst academics. They see it as a tool that implies force rather than persuasion, thus refer to them as “interest groups”[1]. This issue will be discussed further in the American politics part of this essay. Pressure Groups In Britain Stereotype has it that the relationship between pressure groups and the government is adversarial. However pressure groups often prove they are very useful by providing information to government ministers and civil servants if they lack information on policies, particularly controversial issues. Pressure groups provide a “Pro and Anti” argument when controversial issu... ... middle of paper ... ...oice if they do not intend to join a political party. Moreover it is essential to realise pressure groups intend to influence policy, not control it. Therefore the governmental powers remain whilst the keep a firm grip on their voters though pressure groups. Bibliography * Politics USA – Mckeever, Zvesper, Maidment * American Politics and Society – David Mckay * Government and Politics of the United States – Nigel Bowles * Politics UK – Wyn Grant * www.bbc.co.uk/news - politics section --------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] - American Politics and Society: David Mckay. Politics USA: Mckeever, Zvesper, Maidment [2] - Wyn Grant (Political theorist): Politics UK [3] - Adapted from ‘Government and Politics of the United States; Nigel Bowlesb
By establishing this relationship, the interest groups are indirectly helping the executive agencies get their funds and the interest groups gains favorable regulations and contracts from these agencies in exchange. (429) Although some critics argue that interest groups can result to Corruption such as the case with Jack Abramoff (438), Demosclerosis that slows down government functions (439), and Inequality by tilting democracy to the wealthy and powerful since they are the ones who can afford lobbying services (440), I believe that Interest groups are good for democracy. We define democracy as a government in which the people rule and make decisions for themselves, and through interest groups the people are given the chance to be better represented and become actively involve in decision-making. Interest groups represent the people specially the minority, arguably expand the range of perspectives that government officials hear, facilitate a two-way communication between the people and the government by conveying citizen views to government officials and providing information about government activities to the people, encourage
Interest groups are an interesting part of politics that usually gets overlooked. The term interest group is self-explanatory but the definition can be a bit more politically thorough: An organized group that tries to influence the government to adopt certain interests, policies, or measures also called pressure group. Interest group refers to virtually any voluntary association that seeks to publicly promote and create advantages for its cause. America is a melting-pot of races, religions, languages, cultures, beliefs, and ideas, yet it only
Politics is defined as “the way people decide who gets what, when, where, how, and why—without resorting to violence” (McDonough 20). The author asserts that politics is the alternative pathway for a society to make decisions besides choosing violent means to go about doing so. Instead of using force, politicians use words and the method of persuasion in order to get what they want. When a society has a group of people who feel they are not fairly represented by their elected officials, they will often turn to violence in order to implement changes to the political process that will put in place the rules and regulations they are seeking.
Lobbying is an act of persuading the decision makers or law makers, during the legislation process. There are people called lobbyists who are like sales people to persuade the lawmakers in making law or decision in the favor of the interest groups. Lobbying plays an important role in the decision making process as it represents voice of large group of community or people who will be directly affected by that law or decision. So, Lobbyist performs functions like filing petitions to the government or congress to hear the voice of people. The lobbying is working as a form of industry and is protected by 1st amendment of rights to speech, assembly and petition by U.S constitution. According to the Washington DC expert Cooper R. “Professional lobbyist
The Human Rights Campaign is the largest gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender advocacy group in the nation. With over 400,000 members, the group is able to lobby very effectively in Washington and has an impressive legislative record. The HRC began in 1980 as a fund to raise money for gay-supportive congressional candidates. It was meant to be a response to the successful right-wing groups at the time, including the National Conservative Political Action Committee and Moral Majority. By 1984, the Human Rights Campaign Fund was effectively supporting congressional candidates, raising over 475,000 dollars. By 1990, the HRC had a membership of 25 thousand, and was organizing marches in the capitol. Between 1990 and the present, the Campaign grew to it’s current size nearing half of a million members, and the group’s PAC contributed over 5 million dollars to lobbying efforts. These efforts focus on four issues: First, it lobbies to increase efforts to fight HIV/AIDS. Secondly, the HRC aims to use federal legislation and workplace advocacy to combat discrimination in the workplace. Third, an effort is made to pass legislation against anti-gay hate crimes. Lastly, the Campaign works to pass legislation addressing lesbian health issues.
In today’s politics, interest groups play a large role in the government system. An interest Group is defined as 'an organized body of individuals who try to influence public policy.' This system is designed so that interest groups would be an instrument of public influence on politics to create changes, but would not threaten the government much. These organizations are either made up of people who represent a different organization or people who represent themselves. Interest groups represent the citizens’ interests and views, while expressing their own needs as well. They are the link between people and politics, giving a way for the public to voice their opinions. Members of interest groups use different tactics to basically impose their wants or needs onto the government by lobbying, educating, and campaigning.
Essentially, interest groups use many different tactics to accomplish their central goals but this paper will detail 2 of them. The first being lobbying, which is the act of persuading businesses as well as government leaders to help a specific organization by changing laws or creating events in favor of that group. Interest groups use this technique by hiring someone to represent them and advocate their cause to on the behalf of the entire group. These hired representatives usually have more than enough experience within the political field and are able to persuade connections within the government for help with their concerns. This method gets a lot of criticism because although lobbyist offer their input to government officials on pending laws, they only look at what is favorable for their cause. When trying to make a difference you have to not only reflect on your argument but on the side affects of that argument as
Citizens of the United States are traditionally given unlimited freedom of speech, press, and assembly. These American privileges allow interest groups to express their perspectives by using the media and other sources that are accessible to the public. In definition, an interest group is a group of individuals who organize to influence the government’s programs and policies. The main goal of these groups is to have the government both listen and respond to their interests (Shin 243). Historically interest groups have and continue to play a crucial role in American politics; especially since it is an effective form for citizens to interfere with government decision making. Two current interest groups in the United States are the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda and the National Council of La Raza. These particular interest groups demonstrate how interest groups directly and indirectly influence public opinion and the political process.
1. What is the difference between a. How does lobbying work in government? Lobbying is an enormous business. A lobbyist is an advocate who seeks to influence members of the government (like members of Congress) to endorse legislation that would advantage their group. The lobbying occupation is a lawful and essential part of our democratic political procedure that is not extremely well implicit by the broad population.
...has so much power. The findings of this research could be used by campaigners in an attempt to swing an election in their favour, creating an unfair bias in parliament and denigrating the ideals of democracy.
Pressure Groups and Their Influence on the Government Britain is often referred to as a homogenous society as the public. tend to share similar political views. However, more recently, there. has been a decline in membership to political parties and an increase. in the membership of pressure groups. In this essay I will define pressure groups, information surrounding such as the amount of power.
The “advocacy explosion” in the United States in the 20th century has been caused by the extreme increase in the number of interest groups in the United States. The general public views the increase and the groups themselves as a cancer that has come to the body of American politics and is spreading. The explosion in the number of interest groups and interest group members and finances has had an effect on the decline of the American political party and partisanship, the effect on democracy and the public interest, and the bias that has come with interest group competition.
Any government with total control is worth being feared and having a group of individuals who go against their government. With complete control, a government is capable of committing acts against their citizens, which can be perceived as “something good” from the government’s point of view. In 1984 by George Orwell, and “Harrison Bergeron”, by Kurt Vonnegut, the main characters, Winston and Harrison, feel oppressed by the government's acts and events, try to overthrow their government, and go through a realization of hopelessness and defeat.
This essay explores pressure groups and their role in democracy and society. It also discusses how pressure groups use the media as a communication strategy to influence.