In 7th period today we discussed what is going on in the world and the tomorrow's election of course. We also talked about the field trip Wednesday, remember to pack a lunch or face the pricey cafeteria foods offered at the museum. =D

We then took a few notes:
(These are a continuation of Chapter 10 focusing on interest groups and how they work.)
5) The "Ratings game"
A) Interest groups "rate" members of the Congress in terms of how much support they give to legislation that is favorable to their causes. Sometimes they use this to show voters key facts about the members of Congress, and sometimes they are used strictly to embarrass Congress members.

6) Coalition building takes place when several groups join together in a lobbying campaign.

Is the interest group system biased?
-criteria isn't clearly met because some groups are way better represented than other groups. (membership bias)
1) middle and upper classes are far better represented by organized interest groups.
2) This doesn't mean system is unmistakeably biased, the citizens in these groups still represent the people.
3) An increase in the number of business lobbies and PACs in the 1970's and 1980's furthers the imbalance.
-determining whether there is sufficient access to policymakers for all interest groups is key to determining if the 2nd criteria is met.
1)pluralists argue that the national government has many points of access and that virtually all lobbying organizations can find some part of the government that will listen to them.
2) However all forms of access aren't equal and ideological orientation and other variables will give some organizations wider access than others
-The interest group system is tempered by the majoritarianism of elections; the party that wins an election will have more say than its opponent in granting interest groups access, and thus giving them a voice in policy making.