Why Has The Impact Of Professional Lobbyists On Policy
Why has the impact of professional lobbyists on policy-making in the USA been controversial?
There are a number of reasons why the impact of professional lobbyists and pressure groups on policy-making in the USA has been controversial. The main issue is that of the ‘revolving door’ effect that emerges from links between powerful organisations. This refers to the frequent interchange of personnel between Congress and the lobbying industry, which often occurs when there is a member of Congress, such as Chris Dodd who was the Senator of Connecticut, who then transfers to a pressure group, most commonly one that represents a section of society. In Dodd’s case he was automatically employed by the Motion Picture Association for America. Although this advantage is not encountered by pressure groups who do not find themselves as closely linked with governing branches, for those that are, the revolving door effect has a very significant impact on policy-making as the strong ties or loyalties between the institutions call for Congress to legislate with the interests of the pressure group with whom they have shared members with in the forefront of the decision making process on policies and details of legislation. This is therefore seen to be controversial in the USA because of the fact that Congress are said to be taking the wrong factors into consideration when policy-making, as their loyalties should lie primarily with the public. Similarly, critics of the US policy-making system often focus on another effect, that of the ‘iron triangle’. This has similarities with the ‘revolving door’ effect in that it results in tight links between Congress and pressure groups that use these ties to their advantage when influencing Congress, and in the case of the iron triangles, congressional committees and federal departments. A well-known example in the USA would be Vietnam Veterans of America, who have successfully created strong links with the Veterans Committee in Congress as
There are a number of reasons why the impact of professional lobbyists and pressure groups on policy-making in the USA has been controversial. The main issue is that of the ‘revolving door’ effect that emerges from links between powerful organisations. This refers to the frequent interchange of personnel between Congress and the lobbying industry, which often occurs when there is a member of Congress, such as Chris Dodd who was the Senator of Connecticut, who then transfers to a pressure group, most commonly one that represents a section of society. In Dodd’s case he was automatically employed by the Motion Picture Association for America. Although this advantage is not encountered by pressure groups who do not find themselves as closely linked with governing branches, for those that are, the revolving door effect has a very significant impact on policy-making as the strong ties or loyalties between the institutions call for Congress to legislate with the interests of the pressure group with whom they have shared members with in the forefront of the decision making process on policies and details of legislation. This is therefore seen to be controversial in the USA because of the fact that Congress are said to be taking the wrong factors into consideration when policy-making, as their loyalties should lie primarily with the public. Similarly, critics of the US policy-making system often focus on another effect, that of the ‘iron triangle’. This has similarities with the ‘revolving door’ effect in that it results in tight links between Congress and pressure groups that use these ties to their advantage when influencing Congress, and in the case of the iron triangles, congressional committees and federal departments. A well-known example in the USA would be Vietnam Veterans of America, who have successfully created strong links with the Veterans Committee in Congress as