Civics 101           

Political Participation

  • Political Socialization
    • Political socialization = the process of people forming political values, beliefs, and behaviors
    • Socialization helps bring people into a society’s political culture
      • Political culture = fundamental values, beliefs, and practices that most citizens share
        • U.S. political culture includes values such as democracy, liberty, equality, voting
    • Influenced by:
      • Family
      • Peers: friends, classmates, co-workers
      • Education
      • Religion
      • Media
      • Politicians/candidates
      • Interest groups
      • Events
      • Organizations: school, church/synagogue/mosque, clubs, workplace
      • Personal circumstances: social class, gender, race, ethnicity, age, location, job, etc.
      • And more

  • Interest Groups
    • Interest group = a collection of people/organizations with a shared point of view who work together to advance their point of view
      • Try to influence other people/organizations, government policies, political candidates
    • Types of interest groups and examples:
      • Business association: Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Manufacturers
      • Labor union: National Education Association, Service Employees International Union
      • Professional association: American Medical Association, American Bar Association
      • Charity: Red Cross, American Cancer Society
      • Religious group: Moral Majority, Family Research Council
      • Shared interest: National Rifle Association, American Civil Liberties Union
      • Environmental group: Sierra Club, Greenpeace
      • Government watchdog: Common Cause, Public Citizen
      • Civil rights group: National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Human Rights Fund
      • Government group: National School Boards Association
    • Help individuals to gain more power as a group because they can combine resources and money
      • This allows individuals to have a louder voice and gain access to politicians, candidates, the media, etc.
    • Protected by the First Amendment – freedom of speech, assembly, and petition
    • Some are partisan (closely linked to a political party) and others are non-partisan
    • Functions:
      • Lobby government officials
        • Lobbyist = person who represents a particular special interest group
        • Meet with officials, present information, testify at hearings
        • Encourage members of the interest group to also make contact
          • Phone calls, email, write letters, visit
      • Go to court (lawsuit, defense)
      • Try to influence public opinion
        • Through tv/radio ads, billboards, mailings, protests, etc.
      • Get involved in elections
        • Help politicians get elected and re-elected
        • Fight for issues
 
  • Lobbying
    • Lobby = advocate for a particular interest by contacting government officials
    • Lobbyist = a person who represents a particular special interest group and lobbies the government
      • Lobbyists can lobby the federal, state, and/or local government
      • When related to lobbying the federal government, the term “lobbyist” refers to a person meeting the federal government’s definition of a lobbyist
        • Is employed by a client to lobby the government
        • Make more than one contact for a client
        • Spends >20% of his/her time working for a client
      • A lobbyist contacting federal government officials must register with the government
      • In 2012, $3.31 billion was spent on lobbying the federal government
      • Many lobbyists are former members of the House of Representatives and Senate
    • Methods:
      • Speak with politicians and/or their staff to persuade them
        • Face-to-face meetings, phone calls, events, lunch meetings, mailings, email, etc.
          • There are rules on gift-giving from lobbyists to government officials
      • Provide information
        • Government officials are not experts on every topic so lobbyists provide information and data related to their special interest
        • May provide testimony in a legislative hearing to provide information on an issue
      • Draft bills
        • Lobbyists often draft entire bills or parts of bills
      • Comment on proposed regulations
    • Limitations:
      • Lobbyists must register with the government and follow rules
        • The Lobbying Disclosure Act (1995) provides rules for lobbying
          • Ex: must file semi-annual reports listing the issues/bills being lobbied, the government branches and/or agencies contacted, and the amount of money paid by a client
      • Former government officials must wait a specified period of time before becoming a lobbyist
        • House of Representative – one year
        • Senate – two years
      • Campaign contributions through Political Action Committees are regulated
 
  • Ways of Having Influence
    • Voting
    • Helping a campaign
    • Running for office
    • Advocating
    • Contacting lawmakers
    • Lobbying
    • Giving money
 
  • Running for Office
    • Must meet the qualifications for a particular office
      • Qualifications vary by office
    • Explore how many likely voters and donors there will be
    • Make an announcement
    • Campaign
      • Give speeches
      • Meet with citizens
      • Make appearances at events
      • Canvass neighborhoods
      • Make advertisements
        • Ad methods:
          • Common man appeal = portray a candidate as best representing and reflecting the voters
          • Black and white = show two clear sides, one favorably and the other unfavorably
          • Card stacking = present only one side
          • Appeal to authority = use a respected person to attest to a candidate or issue
          • Testimonial = show people talking about their support for a candidate or issue
          • Glittering generalities = make a candidate look great with vague statements
          • Bandwagon = encourage voters to join the winning group
          • Labeling = use unflattering terms to describe an opponent
          • Appeal to fear = make voters afraid of the consequences of a candidate or issue not winning
          • Ad hominem = personally attack a candidate
          • Transfer = show a symbol with a candidate to associate the candidate with the symbol, whether positive or negative
    • Raise money
    • Seek endorsements from popular politicians, respected figures, celebrities, newspapers, etc.
    • Engage in debates
    • Videos: ​The Nomination Process for Presidential Candidates and Contested and Brokered Conventions
 
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