jessica
Why has the impact of professional lobbyists on policy making in the USA been
controversial?
A professional lobbyist is someone who works for a pressure groups and
attempts to influence legislation by discussing important issues with members of
congress.
Many people would consider this issue controversial because of the amount of
money involved. Money becomes the deciding factor, late senator Edward
Kennedy said America had the finest congress money can buy”. Professional
lobbysist work on behalf of the pressure group and if the pressure group has lots
of money to offer then they can easily find ways to bribe congressmen to get
legislation through. This can be in the form of offering to fundraise and campaign
for or against members of congress and paying for radio and televisions ads etc.
gifts are also still given to members of congress even though Bushes 2007 honest
leadership and open government act states this is not allowed. An example of a
pressure group giving money to politicians to help their cause is in the 2003-
2004 cycle, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers gave a total of
$2.3 million and 96% went to the Democrat party.
It is also argued that professional lobbysists work too much for special interests
and against the national interests. A tyranny of the minority is caused. For
example if a small, white, wealthy, conservative elite firmly influenced one of the
3 branches of power then this is not fair. Minority views can prevail at the
expense of the interests of the majority. Therefore, as pressure groups become
more powerful, members of congress or the judiciary or executive may find it
more difficult to serve the public interest and to do what is best for society as a
whole. This problem of the ‘tyranny of the minority’ is most extreme when
pressure groups use direct action to achieve their objectives.
The revolving door syndrome is also controversial because it allows members of
congress or executive branch to take up highly paid jobs as lobbyists. This could
mean that federal officials use their position to do favours in exchange for an
attractive post when they leave office. A former governor Marc F Racinot, who
chaired the Republican National Committee, collected an annual salary of over $1
million as American Insurance Association. Although there was an attempt to
reduce this through the honest leadership and open government act in 2007
which included rulings such as a one year cool off period, this hardly prevented
the revolving door syndrome at all.
Why has the impact of professional lobbyists on policy making in the USA been
controversial?
A professional lobbyist is someone who works for a pressure groups and
attempts to influence legislation by discussing important issues with members of
congress.
Many people would consider this issue controversial because of the amount of
money involved. Money becomes the deciding factor, late senator Edward
Kennedy said America had the finest congress money can buy”. Professional
lobbysist work on behalf of the pressure group and if the pressure group has lots
of money to offer then they can easily find ways to bribe congressmen to get
legislation through. This can be in the form of offering to fundraise and campaign
for or against members of congress and paying for radio and televisions ads etc.
gifts are also still given to members of congress even though Bushes 2007 honest
leadership and open government act states this is not allowed. An example of a
pressure group giving money to politicians to help their cause is in the 2003-
2004 cycle, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers gave a total of
$2.3 million and 96% went to the Democrat party.
It is also argued that professional lobbysists work too much for special interests
and against the national interests. A tyranny of the minority is caused. For
example if a small, white, wealthy, conservative elite firmly influenced one of the
3 branches of power then this is not fair. Minority views can prevail at the
expense of the interests of the majority. Therefore, as pressure groups become
more powerful, members of congress or the judiciary or executive may find it
more difficult to serve the public interest and to do what is best for society as a
whole. This problem of the ‘tyranny of the minority’ is most extreme when
pressure groups use direct action to achieve their objectives.
The revolving door syndrome is also controversial because it allows members of
congress or executive branch to take up highly paid jobs as lobbyists. This could
mean that federal officials use their position to do favours in exchange for an
attractive post when they leave office. A former governor Marc F Racinot, who
chaired the Republican National Committee, collected an annual salary of over $1
million as American Insurance Association. Although there was an attempt to
reduce this through the honest leadership and open government act in 2007
which included rulings such as a one year cool off period, this hardly prevented
the revolving door syndrome at all.
