The Politics of Interest Groups
CMC Government 106, Fall 2018
Tuesday and Thursday 11AM-12:15 PM Classroom Kravis 100
Office Hours: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 1:15-2:15 PM, and by appointment
J.J. Pitney
Office: Kravis 232 Telephone: 909/607-4224
E-mail: jpitney@cmc.edu
Web: http://www1.cmc.edu/pages/faculty/JPitney/
General
This courses examines the role of interest groups in American politics, with
special attention to their influence on public policy. It asks these
questions:
- What are interest groups, and how do they form?
- Are there real differences between economic and "public" interest
groups?
- How do interest groups try to influence elections?
- By what legal and extralegal means do foreign interests play a part in American politics?
- What strategies and tactics do they use in the "outside" game of public
relations and the "inside game" of lobbying?
- Is there a general public interest apart from group interests? If
so, do interest groups advance or undercut it?
Classes
Classes will include lecture and discussion. Finish the readings before
class because our discussions will involve those readings. We shall also
talk about breaking news, so you must read a good news source such as
Politico,
RealClearPolitics or the
New York Times.
Blog
Our class blog is at
http://gov106.blogspot.com. I
shall post videos, graphs, news stories, and other material there. We
shall use some of this material in class, and you may review the rest at your
convenience. You will all receive invitations to post to the blog.
(Please let me know if you do not get such an invitation.) I
strongly encourage you to use the blog in these ways:
- To post questions or comments about the
readings before we discuss them in class;
- To follow up on class discussions
with additional comments or questions.
- To post relevant news items or videos.
Grades
The following will make up your course grade:
- Three 4-page essays: 20% each
- One research paper: 25%
- Class participation, blog: 15%
Details
- The papers will develop your research and writing skills, and test your comprehension of class materials In grading your papers, I will take account of the quality of your writing, applying the principles of Strunk and White’s Elements of Style. If you object to this approach, do not take this course, or anything else that I teach.
- The research paper will
give you an opportunity to delve into scholarly and primary sources.
Students will make very brief -- and PowerPoint-free -- oral
presentations on theit topics.
- Class participation will hone your ability to think on your feet, as I shall call on students at random. If you often miss class or fail to prepare, your grade will suffer. I shall use the cold calls to judge how well you are keeping up with the material. If you object to this approach, do not take this course. I
also expect you to post relevant material to the blog.
- In addition to the required readings (below), I may also give you handouts, emails, and web links covering current events and basic factual information.
- Because
constructive disagreement sharpens thinking, deepens understanding, and
reveals novel insights, I encourage and expect it. All viewpoints
are welcome here, and no ideas are immune from scrutiny and debate.
Your opinions will not affect your grade, as long as you can back up
what you say.
- As a courtesy to your fellow students, please arrive on time and refrain from eating in class.
- Please do not use electronic devices (tablets, laptops, smartphones) in class. Take notes the old-fashioned way, by hand, on paper. Why? Research suggests that it works better.
- Check due dates. Plan your schedule accordingly. Do not plan on extensions.
Plagiarism is not a victimless offense, because it hurts fellow students. Please study our Statement of Academic Integrity, which reads in part: "The
faculty of Claremont McKenna College is firmly committed to upholding
the highest standards of academic integrity. Each faculty member has
the responsibility to report cases of academic dishonesty to the
Academic Standards Committee, which has the duty of dealing with cases
of alleged academic dishonesty."
- Students
who need accommodations due to documented disabilities should contact
the Dean of Students or Assistant Vice President for Diversity and
Inclusion. It is the policy and practice of CMC to comply with the
Americans with Disabilities Act and subsequent amendments, as well as
state and local requirements regarding students with disabilities. CMC
will make every effort to provide reasonable accommodations for
students with medical, attentional, psychological, learning, or
temporary disabilities. Accommodations are provided to allow students
with documented disabilities to have an equal opportunity to be
successful. Students have the responsibility to meet with Assistant
Dean of Students for Disability Services and Academic Success Kari Rood
as early as possible to discuss their request for accommodations. You
may find more information here: https://www.cmc.edu/dean-of-students/disability-support-services
Required Books
Jeffrey Berry and Clyde Wilcox, The Interest Group Society, 6th ed. (New York; Routledge, 2018).
David Callahan, The Givers: Wealth, Power, and Philanthropy in a New Guilded Age (New York; Vintage, 2018).
- Daniel J. DiSalvo, Government Against Itself: Public Union Power and Its Consequences (New York: Oxford University Press, 2015).
- Lee Drutman, The Business of America Is Lobbying (New York: Oxford, 2015).
- Robert J. Spitzer, The Politics of Gun Control, 7th ed. (New York: Routledge, 2018).
Schedule (subject to change, with advance notice).
In addition to the readings below, I may also supply you with various
handouts and Internet links.
Sept 6: Introduction
"I see in the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me
to tremble for the safety of my country. As a result of the war, corporations
have been enthroned and an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the
money power of the country will endeavor to prolong its reign by working upon
the prejudices of the people until all wealth is aggregated in a few hands and
the Republic is destroyed. I feel at this moment more anxiety for the safety of
my country than ever before, even in the midst of war. God grant that my
suspicions may prove groundless." --
Not Abraham Lincoln.
"The canal trustees quickly secured the expert services of Abraham
Lincoln to lobby against the Havens' proposal for an act. This action
tells us that lawyer Lincoln still had great influence in the House of
Representatives, even though he had not sat there since 1842. And it is
the first known proof that he ever acted as a lobbyist. " -- Wayne C. Temple, "A. Lincoln, Lobbyist," Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association 21 (Summer 2000): 35-43.
Is everyone part of a special interest? What is the proper role of
organized interests in a democracy?
Sept 11, 13: Movements, Groups, Factions
"The more
government takes the place of associations, the more will individuals lose the
idea of forming associations and need the government to come to their help" --
Alexis deTocqueville
We hear of "movements," "interest groups" and "factions." Do
these terms mean different things, or are they variations of the same
thing?
Sept 18, 20: Interest Groups, Parties, and Campaigns
"This
fundraising avenue is almost completely shut off for outsiders. It’s
not that I didn’t try. Several times I was told by third house leaders
I met with that I presented an `interesting campaign,' but because the
organization `had a piece of legislation before my opponent’s committee
the next day,' they could not be seen supporting my run with a
donation." -- Pete Peterson
Why do interest groups make contributions and independent expenditures in campaigns?
FIRST ESSAY ASSIGNED SEPT 20, DUE OCT 5.
READ STRUNK AND WHITE FIRST.
Sept 25, 27: Lobbying: The Inside Game and the Outside Game
"Unlike
the neighborhood bakery that wants customers to add their names and
addresses to a petition for expanded outdoor seating, tech companies
typically already know who and where their users are. It means startups
can mobilize — or brobilize — thousands of people via a simple email or
push notification to blast targeted messages to their elected
officials, often with just a few clicks. It’s like astroturfing for the
always-on, location-aware era." -- Caroline O'Donovan, Buzzfeed
Who are lobbyists? How do they work? What is the difference between traditional "inside" lobbying and "outside" lobbying?Oct 2, 4: Business I
"Just got a federal issue advocacy text from... Joann Fabrics." -- Christiana Dominguez `01
How did corporations and trade associations become players?
When do they seek public and private goods?Oct 9, 11: Business II
"[Tom]
Daschle, a `policy adviser' to a range of corporate interests and a
close confidant of many top Democrats, has become one of the most
famous unregistered lobbyists in the city. In fact, his activities as a
consigliere and go-between for business leaders and politicians,
including President Obama, are so well known that among ethics
watchdogs, the technicality in the law that allows lobbyists to evade
registration has become known as the `Daschle Loophole.'" -- Lee Fang, The Nation
What is the relationship between business interests and their lobbyists?
SECOND ESSAY ASSIGNED OCT 11, DUE OCT 26
Oct 16, 18: Foreign Policy, Foreign Interests
"What
did Manafort do for his money? All his clients, notwithstanding their
abysmal human rights records, received foreign aid from the U.S.
government. They wanted more. They hired Manafort to help them get
more. Having more, they could in the future afford (among other things)
to pay Manafort more to get the U.S. government to give them still
more." -- Andrew Ferguson
Who influences foreign and military policy? What is the role of foreign
governments and interests?
What economic and ethnic groups have a stake in foreign affairs?
- Ken Silverstein, " Their
Men in Washington," Harper's, June 2007. On Sakai
- Eric Lipton, Brooke Williams and Nicholas Confessore, "Foreign Powers Buy Influence at Think Tanks," New York Times, September 7, 2014, https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/07/us/politics/foreign-powers-buy-influence-at-think-tanks.html
- Jesse Mesner-Hage et al, "The Foreign Consultant" (video documentary), Washington Post,
July 30, 2018,
https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2018/politics/paul-manaforts-time-in-ukraine-foreign-consultant-documentary/
- James M. McCormick, "Ethnic Interest Groups and American Foreign Policy," in Interest Group Politics, 9th ed., ed. Allan J. Cigler, Burdett A. Loomis, and Anthony J. Nownes (Washington: Sage, 2016). On Sakai.
Oct 25: Philanthropy and Nonprofits I
"It
is easy or give or spend money; but to do this to the right person, to
the right extent, at the right time, with the right motive, and in the
right way, that is not for every one, nor is it easy; wherefore
goodness is both rare and laudable and noble." -- Aristotle
How do philathropists and their foundations affect public policy?Oct 30, Nov 1: Philanthropy and Nonprofits II
"Allies
of GOP Sen. Orrin Hatch have launched a multimillion-dollar fundraising
campaign to build a center honoring the chairman of the powerful Senate
Finance Committee — and they've begun hitting up Utah-based donors, K
Street lobbyists and major corporations, according to sources familiar
with the efforts." -- Anna Palmer and John Bresnahan
"In
the last couple of weeks, it’s become clear what happens when heads of
charities play politics and when politicians play at charity:
Everyone’s hands get dirty." -- Naomi Schaefer RileyHow have philanthropists and their foundations reshaped the issue agenda?
- Callahan, ch. 4, 6, 7.
- Steven M. Teles, The Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement (Princeton; Princeton University Press, 2008), ch. 5 on The Federalist Society (on Sakai).
Nov 6, 8: Labor I
"Despite
what some among us would like to believe, it is not because of our
creative ideas; it is not because of the merit of our positions; it is
not because we care about children; and it is not because we have a
vision of a great public school for every child. NEA and its affiliates
are effective advocates because we have power. And we have power
because there are more than 3.2 million people who are willing to pay
us hundreds of millions of dollars in dues each year..." NEA General Counsel Bob Chanin
How has change in the workforce changed the composition and strategy of organized labor?
Nov 13, 15: Labor II
"For these reasons, States and public-sector unions may
no longer extract agency fees from nonconsenting employees....No form of employee consent
is required.
This procedure violates the First Amendment and cannot
continue. Neither an agency fee nor any other payment
to the union may be deducted from a nonmember’s
wages, nor may any other attempt be made to collect such
a payment, unless the employee affirmatively consents to
pay. " -- Justice Alito, majority opinion in Janus v. AFSCME
"So
the majority’s road runs long. And at every stop are black-robed rulers
overriding citizens’ choices. The First Amendment was meant for better
things. It was meant not to undermine but to protect democratic
governance—including over the role of
public-sector unions." -- Justice Kagan, dissent in Janus v. AFSCME.
How do government employees and lobbyists for government agencies affect public policy?
RESEARCH PAPER DUE NOV 16
Nov 20: Rivals and Bedfollows
"This may sound like the old Monty Python’s Life of Brian
bit where two obviously like-minded religious groups — the People’s
Judean Front and the People’s Front of Judea — were fighting to the
death against each other. Or like the Menshiviks versus the Bolsheviks.
You’re all crazy, a curse on all your heads, my great-grandmother would
have said. But in the autism community, the rift among advocates is
serious. And far from being funny, it is causing me a lot of pain." -- Susan Senator
Why do divergent groups sometimes cooperate? Why do seemingly similar groups sometimes fight one another?- Berry, ch. 9
- Callahan, ch. 10-11
Nov 27, 29: Guns I
"Let
me make one small vote for the NRA. They're good citizens. They call
their Congressmen. They write. They vote. They contribute. And they get
what they want over time." -- George Stephanopoulos
Most Americans favor tighter regulation of firearms. So what do gun-rights groups tend to prevail?THIRD ESSAY ASSIGNED NOV 29, DUE DEC 14.
Dec 4, 6: Guns II
"What we must do now is enact change because that is what we do to things that fail: We change them." -- Parkland shooting survivor Lorenzo Prado
Will the contours of gun politics change?
Dec 11, 13: Reconsiderations
"Money, like water, will always find an outlet." -- Justices Stevens and O'Connor in McConnell v. FEC
In light of the political and legal upheavals of recent years, how will interst group politics evolve?- Berry, ch. 10.
- DiSalvo, ch. 10.
- Callahan, epilogue.
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