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| Preface | p. ix |
| Introduction: Interest Groups and American Politics | p. 01 |
| A Brief History of Interest Groups in Elections | p. 04 |
| Diverse Groups, Diverse Goals | p. 06 |
| The One, the Few, or the Many? Interest Groups and American Politics | p. 11 |
| Interest Groups and the American Political System | p. 13 |
| Characteristics of American Government | p. 13 |
| Characteristics of Ame... MORE | p. 15 |
| Characteristics of American Elections | p. 17 |
| Regulations, Goals, and Resources | p. 19 |
| Strategies and Tactics | p. 23 |
| How this Book is Organized | p. 25 |
| Interest Groups and Political Parties | p. 27 |
| The Strategic Context: Regulations, Goals, and Resources | p. 29 |
| Recruiting and Training Candidates | p. 33 |
| Approaches to Recruitment | p. 33 |
| Training Methods | p. 36 |
| The Presidential Nomination Process | p. 39 |
| Delegate Selection | p. 43 |
| The National Conventions | p. 44 |
| Influencing Party Platforms | p. 46 |
| State Party Conventions | p. 48 |
| Financing Convention Activities | p. 52 |
| Summary | p. 56 |
| Interest Groups and Candidates | p. 59 |
| The Strategic Context: Regulations, Goals, and Resources | p. 60 |
| The Evolution of Campaign Finance Regulation | p. 60 |
| Goals and Resources | p. 64 |
| PACs: An Overview | p. 64 |
| Who Forms PACs and Why | p. 68 |
| PAC Resources | p. 69 |
| PAC Contribution Strategies | p. 71 |
| Influences on Strategic Selection | p. 78 |
| Influences on PAC Decision Making | p. 83 |
| Giving Beyond the Limit | p. 86 |
| Bundling and Coordinated Contributing | p. 86 |
| Giving to Affiliated Organizations | p. 89 |
| Contributions to Parties | p. 91 |
| Contributions of Goods and Services | p. 93 |
| Summary | p. 94 |
| Interest Groups and Voters | p. 97 |
| The Strategic Context: Regulations, Goals, and Resources | p. 98 |
| Endorsements | p. 105 |
| The Endorsement Decision | p. 106 |
| Contested Endorsements | p. 107 |
| Endorsements and Voting Decisions | p. 109 |
| Hit Lists | p. 112 |
| Ratings, Scorecards, and Voters Guides | p. 113 |
| Voter Mobilization | p. 117 |
| Candidate Advocacy Efforts | p. 122 |
| Independent Expenditures | p. 122 |
| Issue Advocacy and Electioneering Communications | p. 125 |
| The 2010 Elections in Context | p. 130 |
| Referenda and Initiatives | p. 132 |
| Summary | p. 134 |
| Evaluating the Role of Interest Groups in Elections | p. 137 |
| Positive and Negative Aspects of Interest Group Involvement | p. 137 |
| Interest Groups and Political Parties | p. 138 |
| Interest Groups and Candidates | p. 144 |
| Interest Groups and Voters | p. 149 |
| Reforming the System | p. 151 |
| Interest Groups and Parties | p. 152 |
| Interest Groups, Candidates, and Voters | p. 155 |
| Directions for Campaign Finance Reform | p. 160 |
| Underlying Assumptions | p. 160 |
| Goals of Reform | p. 161 |
| Summary | p. 164 |
| Keywords, Phrases, and Concepts | p. 166 |
| References | p. 170 |
| Index | p. 178 |
| Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved. |