Interest Groups inThe American Political

System

What are interest groups?Interest groups are private organizations that try to influence

government officials to vote in ways that their members would want.

Business Groups

Fight for the interests of American businesses…examples would be the

chamber of commerce, banks, or insurance companies

Labor Unions

Fight for the interest of American workers…usually those who work

in the same field or industry

Agricultural Groups

Fight for the interests of American farmers…includes dairy, milk,

wheat growers, etc.

Professional Groups

Fight for the interests of professionals…including lawyers,

doctors, engineers, & teachers

Groups Promoting a Cause

Groups that promote a cause or an idea…pro-life, pro-choice, pro-civil

rights, etc.

Groups Promoting Certain Groups of People

Groups that promote a certain group, like veterans or certain

ethnic groups

Religious Organizations

Groups that try to influence public policy because of their religious

faith

Public Interest Groups

Represent all Americans, whether they are members or not

What an Interest Group

Does…

They supply the public with

information that they think should be important.

They build positive images of their groups and issues to

encourage support.They use

propaganda and lobbyists to get

politicians to change how

things are done.

Lobbyists are people who are

paid to try to influence politicans.

The Good of Interest Groups

---They get people interested.

---They allow people to get involved.

---They provide us with details of what government is doing.

---It actually adds another system of checks and balances.

The Bad of Interest Groups

---They don’t always have the best interests of most

Americans in mind.

---It is impossible to tell how many people they really

represent.

---They use tactics that are unethical and illegal to change the system (bribes, threats, etc)