Summary
Contents
Subject index
The book, which has drawn praise for its inviting and accessible style, thoroughly examines the lobbying scene: the settings in which lobbying takes place, the types and styles of lobbyists, the broad range of approaches and techniques used by lobbyists, and the role and influence of lobbying in our system of representative democracy. A favorite among professors and students alike, The Third House is a great choice as a supplement for courses on state politics or interest groups.
Introduction
Introduction
It is not possible to conceive of American politics absent groups and lobbyists. James Madison, in the Federalist Papers, acknowledged that people organized themselves into factions to promote their passions and interests. For Madison, a faction—which we now refer to as an interest group or special interest—was “a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or minority of the whole, who are united and activated by some common impulse or passion, or of interest. …” Factions, according to Madison, are natural phenomena “sown in the nature of man.”
The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution reinforces what the Founding Fathers regarded as a natural basis of political society by guaranteeing the people freedom of speech and also the right “to petition the Government for ...
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