US Pressure Groups

Question 1

How is the existence of pressure groups a key part of the US constitution?

Answer 1

The first amendment gives people the ‘freedom to assemble’, - constitutionally protecting the rights of pressure groups

Question 2

Why do pluralists argue that having many competing pressure groups is good?

Answer 2

It allows government and people to hear both sides of the debate and come to their own conclusions

Question 3

Why are believers of elitism critical of pressure groups?

Answer 3

Wealthy pressure groups have much more influence than poorer groups

Question 4

What percentage of Americans support increased gun control?

Answer 4

60%

Question 5

Examples of insider groups

Answer 5

• American Medical Association
• US Chamber of Commerce
• NRA (depending on which party is in power)

Question 6

Example of an outsider group

Answer 6

Climate Direct Action

Question 7

Example of direct action

Answer 7

Climate Direct Action turned off the valves on 15% of crude oil imports in 2016

Question 8

Examples of promotional groups

Answer 8

• Greenpeace
• ACLU

Question 9

Examples of interest groups

Answer 9

• NAACP
• Christian Coalition of America

Question 10

Why have social movements become more common in the 21st century?

Answer 10

The invention of social media

Question 11

Tactics used by pressure groups

Answer 11

• Electoral campaigning
• Using the courts
• Lobbying
• Direct action

Question 12

What are access points?

Answer 12

Places where pressure groups can aim to wield influence

Question 13

Why does the US have many access points for pressure groups?

Answer 13

Federal nature means there are many different places which influence the law (e.g. federal government, state governments, courts)

Question 14

How much did the League of Conservation Voters (environmentalist group) spend in 2018 on electoral campaigning?

Answer 14

$85m

Largely successful as the House was won back for the Democrats as 60 candidates they endorsed were elected

Question 15

Aim of EMILY’s List

Answer 15

To get pro-choice Democratic women elected

Question 16

How much did EMILY’s list spend endorsing Kamala Harris?

Answer 16

$5.5m

Question 17

Example of a pressure group who scorecard candidates

Answer 17

NRA gives A to F ratings to candidates based on their gun records

Question 18

How does the 1st amendment protect the right to lobby?

Answer 18

Guarantees the right to ‘petition the government for a redress of grievances’

Question 19

Why do many pressure groups have offices in Washington DC?

Answer 19

To have close access to government representatives

Question 20

Example of a company who regularly meets with politicians

Answer 20

Banks JP Morgan/Goldman Sachs had over 350 meetings between 2010-12 with federal agencies
Agencies were writing new banking restrictions as a response to the financial crisis

Question 21

What street is famous for lobbying firms?

Answer 21

K-Street in Washington DC

Question 22

How much was spent on federal lobbying in 2019?

Answer 22

$3.47bn

Question 23

Why do medical companies lobby the government?

Answer 23

Aim to stop the government putting price controls on pharmaceutical products

Question 24

What is revolving door syndrome?

Answer 24

Lobbying firms often want to hire people who have formerly worked in the federal government to take advantage of their connections

Question 25

Example of a former lobbyist being hired by the government

Answer 25

Eugene Scalia, who had previously lobbied for companies such as Facebook, was hired as secretary of labor in 2019

Question 26

How has the US government tried to limit lobbying?

Answer 26

Lobbying Disclosure Act 1995 Restricted 'gifts' from lobbyists to members of Congress

Question 27

Which pressure group lobbies the most?

Answer 27

US Chamber of Commerce Promotes business rights Spent $77m in 2019

Question 28

Successes and failures of the US Chamber of Commerce

Answer 28

Success: Convinced Congress to pass US/Mexico/Canada trade agreement Failure: Could not persuade the Trump administration to lift tariffs on China and EU

Question 29

Which pressure group funded Brown v Topeka?

Answer 29

NAACP

Question 30

What pressure group has regularly used legal challenges to improve abortion rights?

Answer 30

Planned Parenthood

Question 31

Which pressure group challenged Trump's ban on allowing transgender people in the military in the 2017?

Answer 31

ACLU Supreme Court upheld the law

Question 32

What are amicus curiae briefs?

Answer 32

Legal briefs given by pressure groups in Supreme Court cases which pressure groups hope will influence the judges

Question 33

How many amicus curiae briefs were submitted in Obergefell v Hodges?

Answer 33

149

Question 34

Why can amicus curiae briefs be elitist?

Answer 34

Only pressure groups with funds for lawyers can afford to submit them

Question 35

Methods of grassroots campaigning

Answer 35

- Contacting members of Congress - Petitions - Advertising

Question 36

What was the 1963 March on Washington?

Answer 36

250,000 people attended a march outside Congress to campaign for civil rights

Question 37

How many members does the NRA have?

Answer 37

5 million

Question 38

Which moderate Republican did the NRA successfully campaign against in 2012?

Answer 38

Richard Lugar - received an F rating Cost: $169,000

Question 39

How much did the NRA spend campaigning on behalf of Trump in 2020?

Answer 39

$16m

Question 40

Why do pressure groups tend to favour Senate campaigns over House campaigns?

Answer 40

- Senators serve 6 year terms to this secures them long-term influence - The smaller number of Senators mean they individually carry more influence

Question 41

What percentage of the NRA budget in 2016 was spent on Senate races?

Answer 41

96%

Question 42

What is an iron triangle?

Answer 42

The relationship between the executive branch, Congress and pressure groups

Question 43

What is the military-industrial complex?

Answer 43

That defence firms such as Lockheed Martin successfully lobby the government to keep the defence budget high

Question 44

How much do Lockheed Martin spend a year lobbying?

Answer 44

$14m

Question 45

Which members of Congress do defence firms normally target?

Answer 45

Those who sit on the defence committee (e.g. Joe Courtney)

Question 46

Which members of Congress do pharmaceutical firms normally target?

Answer 46

Those who sit on the health committee (e.g. Anna Eshoo)

Question 47

Example of revolving door syndrome related to health

Answer 47

Trump appointed Scott Gottlieb as head of the FDA in 2017. When he stepped down, he went to work for Pfizer.

Question 48

What is hard money?

Answer 48

Direct donations to a political candidate

Question 49

What is soft money?

Answer 49

Given to a political party or PAC but not targeted towards a specific candidate

Question 50

Why is soft money more powerful than hard money?

Answer 50

There are no limits on soft money contributions

Question 51

What are independent expenditures?

Answer 51

When money is spent campaigning to elect a candidate, however, this is completely independent of the candidate themselves

Question 52

What are political action committees (PACs)?

Answer 52

Groups which make direct, hard money, contributions to candidates

Question 53

What is the cap for PAC donations?

Answer 53

$5,000 per year

Question 54

What are SuperPACs?

Answer 54

Groups which campaign using soft money/independent expenditures

Question 55

Citizens United v FEC (2010)

Answer 55

Court ruled that the first amendment right to free speech applies to corporations and pressure groups, allowing them to make unlimited political donations

Question 56

How much did SuperPACs spend in the 2020 election?

Answer 56

$1.8bn

Question 57

Are SuperPACs too influential? - YES

Answer 57

- Means that rich groups have huge influence and can support candidates which support their goals - Members of Congress cannot fairly criticise big businesses in fear of losing their funding - Reduced the importance of political parties

Question 58

Which wealthy individual contributed over $100m to conservative SuperPACs in 2020?

Answer 58

Sheldon Adelson

Question 59

Are SuperPACs too influential? - NO

Answer 59

- Free speech gives the freedom to political donation in a pluralist society - Large donations do not guarantee victory (Clinton received $129m more than Trump) - Candidates can have strong grassroots support instead of large SuperPAC donations (Sanders)

Question 60

How do US pressure groups have more access points than UK pressure groups?

Answer 60

While the UK has devolved regions, the US has both state and federal governments as well as more direct democracy

Question 61

What is the maximum amount UK pressure groups can spend on an election?

Answer 61

£319,000 In the US this is unlimited through the use of SuperPACs

Question 62

In which country are political advertisements banned on TV?

Answer 62

UK

Question 63

What are some structural differences between UK and US pressure groups?

Answer 63

- More access points in the US - Unlimited election spending in the US - SCOTUS is very powerful so pressure groups target the courts more in the US

Question 64

What are some rational similarities/differences between UK and US pressure groups?

Answer 64

- UK MPs are more likely to be loyal to their party than to a pressure group - Both Labour and the Democrats are funded by trade unions and therefore support greater workers rights - Direct action is used in both countries with international movements such as BLM

Question 65

What are some cultural similarities/differences between UK and US pressure groups?

Answer 65

- Both see themselves as pluralist democracies - Both countries have been criticised for elitism - Direct action has caused major changes in both countries histories (Civil Rights Movement, Suffragettes)