Influencing Congress

1. Chapter 7.3 Influencing Congress Government Mr. Biggs

2. Influences on Lawmakers • A number of factors influence lawmakers’ decisions: • Their personality • Congressional staff members • Constituents • Their political party • The President • Special interest groups The Influence of Voters The political careers of all lawmakers depend upon how the voters back home feel about lawmakers’ job performance. What Voters Expect Experienced lawmakers know that their constituents expect them to pay a great deal of attention to their state or district.

3. Learning What Voters Want • Most lawmakers use several methods to try to • keep track of their constituents’ opinions. • These methods include: • Making frequent trips to their district • Having staff members scan mail and email • Using professional pollsters to conduct opinion polls • Listening to “rain or shine” supporters The Influence of Parties Political party identification is one of the most important influences on a lawmaker’s voting behavior. Party Voting On most bills, Democrats tend to vote together, as do most Republicans. In the House, members vote with their party more than 70% of the time. Senators, who are generally more independent than House members, are less likely to follow their party’s position.

4. The Importance of Parties Republicans and Democrats vote with their parties because members of each party are likely to share the same ideology about public policy. Another reason for party voting is that most lawmakers do not have strong opinions about every issue on which they vote. Gaining the support of party members is one of the main jobs of a party leader. Very few issues are unaffected by political party affiliation. Other Influences on Congress • Two other influences affect the decisions of lawmakers: • The president • Interest groups

5. The Influence of the President • All presidents try to influence Congress to pass the laws that the president and his party support. • Members of Congress have often complained that presidents have more ways to influence legislation and policy than do lawmakers. • Presidents can: • Use the media to influence • public opinion • Give or withhold support to • an individual congressman

6. The Influence of Interest Groups • Lobbyists are representatives of interest groups. • http://www.youtube.com/v/xdh_m5lQUUY • Lobbyists try to convince members of Congress to support policies favored by the groups they represent. • Their efforts to persuade officials to support their point of view is called lobbying. • Lobbyists use a variety of tactics to influence lawmakers: • They provide lawmakers with information • They visit lawmakers in their office • They encourage constituents to write letters • They persuade lawmakers to vote a particular way

7. Political Action Committees (PACs) PACs are political fund-raising organizations established by corporations, labor unions, and other special-interest groups. PAC funds come from voluntary contributions of employees, stockholders, and union members. A PAC uses its funds to support lawmakers who favor the PACs positions on issues.

8. The End