POS-4424 Lecture Notes - Lecture 13: Government Accountability Office, Federal Election Campaign Act
Interests Groups: Triangles and Networks
Interest Group Influence over Time:
Iron Triangles: a term used to describe a policy making relationship between legislature,
bureaucracy, and interest groups.
Iron Triangle to Issue Network (What caused the change)
Issue Networks: a term used to describe an interconnected group of governmental and
non-governmental Actors who influence public policy. (Issue to issue: consistently
influx)
New interest groups and the Prez can’t break the Iron Triangle. Prez will last only 8 years.
Average length of House of Rep: 6 terms (12 years)
Heclo: “Subgovernments” One per policy (One Iron Triangle)
Issue Networks: What caused the transformation: The rise of citizen groups in the 1960s (Civil
rights and Anti-War groups) changed the nature of influence.
Congressional Rules changes also precipitated the transition away from iron triangles.
Open to citizen groups
Who is in the network? Political executives, career bureaucrats, management and policy
consultants, academic researchers, journalists, foundation officer, and white house aides
etc.
Issue based, not policy based (different actors involved)
Transitive (change constantly)
Example: Issue Network on Homeland Security (Transportation)
find more resources at oneclass.com
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Document Summary
Iron triangles: a term used to describe a policy making relationship between legislature, bureaucracy, and interest groups. Iron triangle to issue network (what caused the change) Issue networks: a term used to describe an interconnected group of governmental and non-governmental actors who influence public policy. (issue to issue: consistently influx) New interest groups and the prez can"t break the iron triangle. Average length of house of rep: 6 terms (12 years) Heclo: subgovernments one per policy (one iron triangle) Issue networks: what caused the transformation: the rise of citizen groups in the 1960s (civil rights and anti-war groups) changed the nature of influence. Congressional rules changes also precipitated the transition away from iron triangles. Political executives, career bureaucrats, management and policy consultants, academic researchers, journalists, foundation officer, and white house aides etc. Issue based, not policy based (different actors involved) Committee on homeland security: select committee on intelligence (joint committee) Committee on armed services, judiciary committee, fbi, committee on transportation,
