Warm Up

1. Quiz Vocab Terms • What is the difference between an open primary and a closed primary? • What is a PAC? • Caucus • Primary • Delegates • Constituents • Electoral College • FEC • PAC • Super Tuesday • Super PAC • Citizens United v. FEC Warm Up

2. Quiz Vocab Terms • Choose THREE vocabulary terms from the right and define them. • Caucus • Primary • Delegates • Constituents • Electoral College • FEC • PAC • Super Tuesday • Super PAC • Citizens United v. FEC Warm Up

3. What are Interest Groups? • Lobbying • Pros & Cons Unit 3.5 Interests Groups

4. Citizens & Political Parties • Voting • Electoral Process • Media • Interest Groups Unit 3: Participating in Government

5. Vocabulary • Interest groups • Hard Money • Lobbyist • Lobbying • Public-interest group • Soft money • Special Interest groups Learning Outcomes • Evaluate the role of lobbyists and private and public interest groups in influencing governmental policy. • Determine how the public agenda is set and shaped by interest groups and lobbyists. Interest GroupsVocabulary and Learning Outcomes

6. List of strategies that citizens or organizations can use to influence how a legislative representative votes on a particular bill. How might these actions benefit democracy? Interest Groups

7. What are Interest Groups? • Groups of people with common concerns who join together to influence government policy and shape public policy to their benefit • Public Policy - Goals the government pursues in the areas it is involved. • How are Interest Groups and Political Parties similar? • How are they different? Interest Groups

8. Interest GroupsDifferences bt Political Parties & Interest Groups

9. What are functions of Interest Groups? • Raising awareness • Represent people who share attitudes instead of geography • What does that mean? • Provide specialized information to government agencies/legislators • Keep tabs on public agencies and officials. • Provide additional Checks & Balances • Encourage competition • ** Influencing government policy ** Interest Groups

10. Types Interest Groups • Business Groups • National Association of Manufactures • Chamber of Commerce • Labor Groups (unions) • American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations • NFL PlayersAssociation • Agricultural Group • National Farmers Union • Professional Organizations • American Bar Association • National Education Assoc. • Issue-Oriented Groups • NRA • Planned Parenthood • Organization For Specific Groups • AARP • National Association for the Advancement of Colored People • Religious Organizations • Public Interest Groups • League of Women Voters • Public Citizen, Inc. Interest Groups

11. What were some of the challenges you had with yesterday’s activity? Whether you were a politician or lobbyists. • How did you overcome these challenges? • What was easy for you in the activity? • Yesterday, it was obvious that all the politicians did not like the same interest groups. Why do you think that is? Warm Up

12. What could be some possible problems? • Too much influence • Not exactly proportion to their size • Who represents who?? • How big are some organizations • i.e. American Citizens Committee • Things are not always what they seem • Are they really speaking for all they claim to be • Bribery, threats, and so on… Daily Show – Interest Groups Interest Groups

13. Interest Groups/Lobbyists: • Read your info sheet on your interest group and your proposal • Come with a strategy on how you will sell your proposal to the different politicians • Lobby (meet) with a Politician about your proposal. Try to be persuasive about your cause and proposal. Politicians: • With the other Politicians, come up with a ratings system you can use & questions that can be ask during your proposal meetings. • Take Notes on the proposals from the interest groups • Choose 4 proposals to put on your political agenda for the next year. • Be prepared to defend your decisions made with the lobbyists. Interest Group Activity

14. 1) Name 2 new Interest Groups you have learned about in the last week and describe their cause. 2) Analyze this cartoon. In your analysis describe the cartoonist’s message and include symbolism. Warm Up

15. Shaping Public Agenda • More Essential Vocabulary • Public Agenda – the public issues on which the people’s attention is focused • Lobbying– process by which interest groups attempt to affect the decisions and actions of public officials • Lobbyists– people who try to persuade the public officials on behalf of the interest groups Interest Group

16. Shaping Public Agenda • Lobbying • Congress – spend most of their time working with different committees. • Executive Branch – work on relationships with senior aides in this branch • Judicial Branch – using the courts to push policy goals. Ex: Brown v. Topeka Board of Ed; NAACP ended segregation • Grass-roots Lobbying – use member/people to put pressure on legislation thru letters, phone calls, emails, etc. • Influencing Public Opinion – use TV, print, and internet to mold public opinion. Attempt to use the media thru press releases. • Propaganda– technique of persuasion to influence people • Electioneering – help politicians win office Interest Group

21. Jack Abramoff: The Lobbyist’s Playbook Interest GroupsVideo