Pros And Cons Of Interest Groups

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Do interest groups help or hurt America’s democratic process? Provide a rigorous debate on both sides of the issue before taking a stand in your conclusion.
The United States of America is a special continent because of its history of how it became to be known as United States. A part of what makes it extra special is that it is a democracy type government. The government operations are based upon a democratic process. Democratic process type of government in which every single qualified resident are permitted level with cooperation, either specifically or in a roundabout way in the proposition, improvement and foundation of laws that run the general public. Our law based nation, government, or political framework is administered by agents …show more content…

“Not only do ordinary citizens not have uniquely substantial power over policy decisions, they have little or no independent influence on policy at all,” the authors conclude.
• In cases where citizens obtained their desired policy outcome, it was in fact due to the influence of elites rather than the citizens themselves: “Ordinary citizens might often be observed to ‘win’ (that is, to get their preferred policy outcomes) even if they had no independent effect whatsoever on policy making, if elites (with whom they often agree) actually prevail.”
Depending on how one is viewing the choices a grey area can exist for positive and negative effects of having interest groups. Interest groups do put people on the forefront of knowing news on issues that may affect lifestyles immediately or later. If that organization is viewed as helping to make the world a better place, providing citizen with a discount of some kind, and support a benefit that can make citizen more efficient the view is helpful. Interest groups can also be hurting by way the special interest of group may be selfish, bad and focus on a sacrificing public interest for private interest. Either way to me interest groups are just public stunts to evade small issues over the larger issues. Interest groups are helpful to the American democratic process. They secure change whether positive or negative it propels the …show more content…

Interest Groups. (n.d.). Retrieved October 27, 2015, from http://www.usca.edu/polisci/apls201 text/Ch9 Interest Groups.htm
Gettysburg Address. (n.d.). Retrieved October 26, 2015, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gettysburg_Address This page was last modified on 26 October 2015, at 01:42..

Gilens, Martin; Page, Benjamin I. "Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups and Average Citizens,” Perspectives on Politics, September 2014, Vol. 12, Issue 3, 564-581. doi: 10.1017/S1537592714001595.
Interest Groups. (n.d.). Retrieved October 28, 2015, from https://www.opensecrets.org/industries/mems.php?party=A&cycle=2012

The influence of elites, interest groups and average voters on American politics - Journalist's Resource. (2014, November 14). Retrieved October 25, 2015, from http://journalistsresource.org/studies/politics/finance-lobbying/the-influence-of-elites-interest-groups-and-average-voters-on-american-politics#sthash.APTrNi4L.dpuf

Wills, G. (1992). Lincoln at Gettysburg: The words that remade America (p. 319). New York: Simon &