Chapter 6: Political Science

A private group that raises and distributes funds for use in election campaigns is called a(n) a. interest group. b. political action committee. c. campaign revenue association. d. advocacy association. e. 8F crowd.

According to the Measures of Texas Civic Health, _______ percent of Texans have either contacted or visited a public official, ranking Texas ________ among the states. a. 36; fiftieth b. 25; forty-second c. 9; forty-ninth d. 38, thirty-seventh e. 78.1;forty-first

Dark money is political money where the donors of the money do NOT have to be disclosed. True False

Entertaining politicians is one of the most critical ways for lobbyist to gain access. True False

Gaining access to politicians through personal connections is a violation of Texas state laws. True False

Incumbents are most likely to receive large campaign contributions. True False

Interest groups are limited to lobbying the legislature; they CANNOT lobby executive agencies or the courts, True False

Lobbyist may gain access to legislators by building support for an issue among their constituents. True False

More money is spent in Texas by the communications industry than any other represented interest. True False

Most political action committee spending in Texas represents a. business b. labor c. single-issue ideological organizations d. consumers e. agriculture

On average, incumbents in the Texas House of Representatives are able to fundraise ________ challengers. a. 50 percent more than b. twice as much as c. 3 times the amount of d. 5 times as much as e. 10 times as much as

One important way for interest groups to gain access to those in Texas government is to employ _______ as lobbyists. a. retired sport stars b. political science majors c. Republican campaign consultants d. former legislators and government officials e. celebrities

One of the most influential professional group in Austin is the a. Mexican American Legal Defense Fund b. Texas Lawyers Association c. Texas Medical Association d. Teachers Association e. Business Association

Scandals about the "steak men," Bo Pilgrim, and Gib Lewis resulted in a. restrictions on speaking fees b. the creation of a state ethics commission c. restrictions on pleasure trips d. limits on lobbying behavior e. removal of the "steak men" and Gib Lewis

Political action committees help interest groups bundle campaign donations True False

Texas trial lawyers frequently ally with a. the gas and oil industry b. pharmaceutical companies c. consumer interest groups d. public employee unions e. environmental groups

Texans Advocating for Meaningful Student Assessment enabled people to join together and seek policy change in a number of ways EXCEPT by a. providing like-minded individuals an organizational structure for discussing problems and offering solutions b. providing a vehicle for working with other organizations like the Texas Association of School Administrators, who were also concerned with testing c. raising money to help pay for their efforts d. educating the public and policy makers alike about the problems of testing across the elementary and secondary curriculum e. successfully removing the end-or-year course exams

The largest and most effective public employee interest group in Texas is made up of a. firefighters b. police officers c. teachers d. justices of the peace e. autoworkers

The practice of combining several individual campaign contributions into one larger contribution from a group in order to increase the group's impact is known as a. bribery b. PAC-ing c. bundling d. soft money

Which is NOT a reason for forming a political action committee? a. Candidates are more likely to notice a substantial contribution from a political action committee than small individual contributions b. A substantial political action committee donation to a candidate can more likely gain political access than a lobbyist who simply asks c. A political action committee sends a message that its members care strongly enough about their agenda d. Candidates are more likely to allow political action committees to purchase media access during election season e. Political action committees serve as intermediaries to provide money to candidates that their members might not want to support publicly

Which of the following is NOT a description of an interest group? a. its members pursue a common goal b. it attempts to affect public policy c. members seek to achieve their desired goals through political means d. it is usually made up of a large number of people e. it is typically active only at the national level of government

Which political action committees spend the least amount of money in Texas elections? a. single-issue political action committees b. labor unions c. business groups d. lawyers e. consumer groups

A lobbyist is an individual employed by a political action committee who tries to influence governmental decisions on behalf of that group True False

The 8F Crowd was a. an influential cartel of political activists who wrote the Texas Constitution of 1876 b. a loose but influential group of Texas businessmen c. the first Latino civil rights organization in Texas d. a group of corrupt politicians dependent on bribery during the early twentieth century e. a group of eight Florida businessmen who came to Texas hoping to get elected to the Texas legislature

What do interest groups want from policy makers? a. they want policy that is beneficial for their groups b. they want information that benefits their groups c. they want monies for their special projects d. they want unlimited access to the policy makers e. they want to help write policy that addresses their interests

What did Lonnie "Bo" Pilgrim do in 1989? a. he distributed $10,000 checks to state senators while lobbying them on a bill b. he established the first political action committee devoted solely to Texas politics c. he united a number of food production companies to crete a single-industry lobbying group d. he was convicted of bribing three Texas legislators with promises of free chicken for life e. he bough a number of votes on controversial bill by offering legislators free turkeys for Thanksgiving

Which interest is NOT represented in a list of the top interest groups in Texas? a. trial lawyers b. the environment c, the gas and oil industry d. public employees e. agriculture

Which of the following groups have had notable political success by litigating in federal courts? a. professional groups b. public employee interest groups c. civil rights groups d. chemical company lobbyists e. business lobbyists

Which of the following is the best example of a public interest group? a. the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund b. the Texas Medical Association c. Common Cause d. Texans for Lawsuit Reform e. The Texas Bar Association

Interest groups typically have more time, money, and expertise to offer politician than do average citizens True False