The Influence Battle: Public Opinion vs Lobbying in American Politics

Abstract

Government and Politics Paper Between Public Opinion and Lobbyist, who has the most Political Influence? One can argue that both public opinion and lobbying play a significant role in shaping American politics, especially in areas relating to public policies. However, it is imperative to understand the meaning of each term and its effect on American politics to determine the weight of either term on American politics. According to Burstein (2003), public opinion represents the distribution of individual suggestions, preferences, and evaluations of a specific issue. Therefore, regarding politics, one can define public opinion as the citizens’ attitude, opinions, will, and recommendations about any political-related issues, leaders, and institutions. It is an approach that proves influential in American politics as it exerts its powers on political decisions through its latent aspects. The people's voice and reaction exert a powerful influence in opposing any unjustified or unsatisfactory decision or action by any public official or the government fostering change for public satisfaction. Public opinion is always regarded as the public's voice that is restricted to politics and thus can remain applicable in other pubic-related areas like culture, literature, and fashion. Public opinion is also not restricted to certain persons but rather open for the public to give out their thoughts and feelings on any public issue of interest. On the other hand, just like public opinion, lobbying is a legal activity that lobbyist engages in to enhance change in American politics and government. Lobbying pays close attention to policymaking, and its effects remain well defined in American governance. Bertrand et al. (2020) describes lobbying in America is a paid activity whereby special interest groups hire well-connected and knowledgeable professional advocates to argue for particular legislation in decision-making bodies like United States Congress. So far, it is clear that unlike in public opinion, where participants are not restricted to certain characteristics like professionalism and connectedness, lobbying participants must express defined abilities in terms of connectivity and advocacy. Lawyers are great examples of lobbyists that exercise lobbying in America. Who exactly is a lobbyist? According to Thurber, Campbell, and Dulio (2018), a lobbyist is a professional advocate who advocates for changes, thus influencing political decisions on behalf of an organization or an individual. A lobbyist aims to ensure that any advocacy amends existing regulations and laws. It is a strategy that defines positive influences on the government, especially when the proposed legislations work for the government's good. However, lobbying can also adversely affect the government as lobbyists manage and control all information that lawmakers receive. Thus, they can overload them with biased information, triggering such leaders' negative attitudes towards the government. The negative energy from the leaders can derail development and growth, making the government deemed unproductive. While it is clear that public opinion and lobbyists differ even in their simple definition, their effects prove influential in American politics, with lobbying taking the lead. American governance, in most cases, considers the viability of public opinion in matters relating to voting. The public votes and sends in various leaders as their representatives at different levels of leadership within the American government do not imply that such opinions are always considered vital in all the government undertakings. Government opts to use qualified leaders to make most of the public policies without consultation with the public to ascertain their approval through public opinion. However, it is imperative to note that if justice prevails, public opinion needs to remain considered and influential in almost all matters relating to the public, from voting to public policymaking, especially when the executive or legislature has to decide (Stimson, 2018). For instance, what other force could be more influential in matters of Constitutional Amendment if not the public's voice who remains the major beneficiaries of enslaved people to any good or bad constitutional law? Unfortunately, the political attitude of the common citizen remains vested in outside agencies that stimulate and reinforce the public to react either positively or negatively towards any public issues...