Who is a Lobbyist and Do They Serve a Useful Purpose
Dennis AuBuchon
May 01, 2009
The definition of a lobbyist as identified in www.dictionary.com is a person who tries to influence legislation on behalf of a special interest; a member of a lobby. I feel this definition does not go far enough. We as citizens constantly or should continuously voice our opinion on legislation being processed either at the state or federal level. When enough of us voice the same opinion we become a group of individuals which could be referred to as lobbyists trying to influence legislation.
The main point of this article is to broadly identify who may be considered a lobbyist and if lobbyists serve a useful purpose. There are times when lobbyists serve a useful purpose especially when it appears that the respective legislative body is considering legislation which may impinge on our rights as individuals. One example is the right to bear arms included in the 2nd Amendment to the Constitution. While not everyone agrees about the use of firearms under the Constitution it is our right to own them if we so choose. Recently there have been efforts to make changes in the way individuals obtain firearms. This includes making the process so restrictive that it hinders individuals who routinely obey the law and want to protect themselves and their families. It has been stated many times that criminals do not pay attention to the law when they want firearms that is why they are criminals. Criminals do not pay attention to the laws on the books. Making changes to rights we have under the Constitution does not or will not impact the way criminals operate on a daily basis. It has also been cited in news reports that when criminals were interviewed it was learned that many did not purchase their firearms through normal channels.
I do agree there needs to be some restrictions on the sale of firearms to prevent the mentally ill from purchasing a firearm and those who may be on medication which may hinder their ability to make proper decisions. Lobbyists who have the best interest of the public in mind in their efforts, and there are some, serve a useful purpose to keep logic and common sense in the legislative process. Much legislation is proposed each year and the number has been identified to be in the thousands. We as individuals do not have the time to keep track of all legislation being processed. In this respect lobbyists serve a useful purpose to keep the issue in the news and in the minds of our legislative senators and representatives.
There are many lobbyists´ organizations and though we may not agree with their purpose in some cases it is their right to voice their opinion and use the process they have in place to make their point. Many organizations lobby Congress and many have valid points of view on various issues. While it is their right to make their case to legislators there should be restrictions in place to limit the type of access other than what is available to everyday American citizens. Many times in news events the perception has been made that lobbyists have greater access to our government officials than the American people. There have been examples where government officials and lobbyists have broken the law and were tried in a court of law. This would be an example where lobbyists are not beneficial to the legislative process. However, these examples, I believe, do not represent the entire lobbyists´ organizations existing today.
Granted there are lobbyists that strictly have their own desires in mind and may not be beneficial to the American people. In this instance lobbyists harm the legislative process and when our government officials are influenced by these efforts we typically question the action being taken. We constantly hear about the activities of lobbyists and in some cases there have been problems where decisions have been made that are not in the best interest of the American people.
It has also been stated that lobbyists are paid individuals to communicate with legislators on their ideas. Lobbyists do not necessarily have to be individuals who are paid to converse with legislators. There are many fine individuals who have good ideas but it is sometimes hard to communicate those ideas to legislators. The organizational structure of lobbyists serves a useful purpose in this respect to convey ideas and suggestions of various groups. We as the general public do not typically have access to lobbyists groups. Two examples of lobbyists groups are the NRA and labor unions. Both of these organizations exist to serve their members and in some respect the American people. These organizations have existed for many years and both have a useful purpose and will continue to have in the foreseeable future. The NRA serves their members and relate to the right to bear arms granted under the 2nd Amendment to the Constitution. The rights of workers through labor unions are also important. While not everyone belongs to a union and some states even have a right to work law labor unions have improved the general working conditions of the American worker.
Lobbyists are part of the fabric of America whether it is right or wrong I believe they are here to stay. The key with lobbyists is they have a right to voice their opinion on issues like any citizen of the United States and that right should not be impinged. The access lobbyists seem to have to our legislative officials can be counterproductive to the rights of the average American citizen. Sometimes lobbyists can become so powerful that their influence can have greater weight with our legislative officials. Everyone has a right to have their opinion heard on an even scale and no one opinion should have greater weight than another.
Lets us not forget that our elected and appointed government officials work for us the citizens of the United States. Any effort to voice our opinion whether it is as an individual or through the efforts of lobbyists is a good thing. Collectively as a group when we voice our opinion to our government officials we become an effort to influence the votes of our senators and representatives just like a lobbyist. Lobbyists are typically paid and work for organizations with a defined purpose. We as voters also have a defined purpose when we voice our opinion to government officials we have elected to office on issues important to us. Communicating regularly with government officials is important. There are several sites which offer communication tools including www.senate.gov and www.house.gov. Another site offer search capability to look for legislation by topic and the agenda for the Congress. This site is www.govtrack.us.
Another point to make is that the President cannot pass legislation for his agenda this must be accomplished by both legislative houses of Congress. Lobbyists help to focus attention on specific issues and use their resources to communicate with various officials associated with the committees covering the topic they want to influence. We as citizens must also look to utilize the communication tools identified in the preceding paragraph to do the same. This is our country and if we do not communicate our opinions to our elected officials at any level then they may make decisions to which we do not agree. One important new aspect is the requirement that President Obama has initiated with his administration is the requirement to document communications from registered lobbyists to his administration. While this may be a welcomed change from past practices there have been some complaints about the restrictions and violations of free speech.
Free speech is an important topic as we all have the right of free speech and I am not going to discuss the details of the battle over the requirements President Obama has implemented. I have written other articles related to the free speech topic. The basic principle of free speech is that we all have a right to express our opinion but it does not require that anyone listen. I welcome the requirement that President Obama has initiated for his administration regarding lobbyist communications. Any documentation of communication with lobbyists whether verbal or written opens the door for more traceability and this is a good thing. The details of the requirement require a record be initiated within 3 days of any communication with a registered lobbyist. I feel the same requirement should be in place for any of our senators and representatives and the information be available to the public. In this way we would be able to see as a voter who is lobbying Congress with their agenda. The actions of lobbyists are not necessarily bad but the public has a right to know what issues are being pushed with regards to actions being taken by Congress. The end result of whether a lobbyist serves a useful purpose depends on their perspective and whether it is for their personal agenda or one which benefits the American citizens.
The main point of this article is to broadly identify who may be considered a lobbyist and if lobbyists serve a useful purpose. There are times when lobbyists serve a useful purpose especially when it appears that the respective legislative body is considering legislation which may impinge on our rights as individuals. One example is the right to bear arms included in the 2nd Amendment to the Constitution. While not everyone agrees about the use of firearms under the Constitution it is our right to own them if we so choose. Recently there have been efforts to make changes in the way individuals obtain firearms. This includes making the process so restrictive that it hinders individuals who routinely obey the law and want to protect themselves and their families. It has been stated many times that criminals do not pay attention to the law when they want firearms that is why they are criminals. Criminals do not pay attention to the laws on the books. Making changes to rights we have under the Constitution does not or will not impact the way criminals operate on a daily basis. It has also been cited in news reports that when criminals were interviewed it was learned that many did not purchase their firearms through normal channels.
I do agree there needs to be some restrictions on the sale of firearms to prevent the mentally ill from purchasing a firearm and those who may be on medication which may hinder their ability to make proper decisions. Lobbyists who have the best interest of the public in mind in their efforts, and there are some, serve a useful purpose to keep logic and common sense in the legislative process. Much legislation is proposed each year and the number has been identified to be in the thousands. We as individuals do not have the time to keep track of all legislation being processed. In this respect lobbyists serve a useful purpose to keep the issue in the news and in the minds of our legislative senators and representatives.
There are many lobbyists´ organizations and though we may not agree with their purpose in some cases it is their right to voice their opinion and use the process they have in place to make their point. Many organizations lobby Congress and many have valid points of view on various issues. While it is their right to make their case to legislators there should be restrictions in place to limit the type of access other than what is available to everyday American citizens. Many times in news events the perception has been made that lobbyists have greater access to our government officials than the American people. There have been examples where government officials and lobbyists have broken the law and were tried in a court of law. This would be an example where lobbyists are not beneficial to the legislative process. However, these examples, I believe, do not represent the entire lobbyists´ organizations existing today.
Granted there are lobbyists that strictly have their own desires in mind and may not be beneficial to the American people. In this instance lobbyists harm the legislative process and when our government officials are influenced by these efforts we typically question the action being taken. We constantly hear about the activities of lobbyists and in some cases there have been problems where decisions have been made that are not in the best interest of the American people.
It has also been stated that lobbyists are paid individuals to communicate with legislators on their ideas. Lobbyists do not necessarily have to be individuals who are paid to converse with legislators. There are many fine individuals who have good ideas but it is sometimes hard to communicate those ideas to legislators. The organizational structure of lobbyists serves a useful purpose in this respect to convey ideas and suggestions of various groups. We as the general public do not typically have access to lobbyists groups. Two examples of lobbyists groups are the NRA and labor unions. Both of these organizations exist to serve their members and in some respect the American people. These organizations have existed for many years and both have a useful purpose and will continue to have in the foreseeable future. The NRA serves their members and relate to the right to bear arms granted under the 2nd Amendment to the Constitution. The rights of workers through labor unions are also important. While not everyone belongs to a union and some states even have a right to work law labor unions have improved the general working conditions of the American worker.
Lobbyists are part of the fabric of America whether it is right or wrong I believe they are here to stay. The key with lobbyists is they have a right to voice their opinion on issues like any citizen of the United States and that right should not be impinged. The access lobbyists seem to have to our legislative officials can be counterproductive to the rights of the average American citizen. Sometimes lobbyists can become so powerful that their influence can have greater weight with our legislative officials. Everyone has a right to have their opinion heard on an even scale and no one opinion should have greater weight than another.
Lets us not forget that our elected and appointed government officials work for us the citizens of the United States. Any effort to voice our opinion whether it is as an individual or through the efforts of lobbyists is a good thing. Collectively as a group when we voice our opinion to our government officials we become an effort to influence the votes of our senators and representatives just like a lobbyist. Lobbyists are typically paid and work for organizations with a defined purpose. We as voters also have a defined purpose when we voice our opinion to government officials we have elected to office on issues important to us. Communicating regularly with government officials is important. There are several sites which offer communication tools including www.senate.gov and www.house.gov. Another site offer search capability to look for legislation by topic and the agenda for the Congress. This site is www.govtrack.us.
Another point to make is that the President cannot pass legislation for his agenda this must be accomplished by both legislative houses of Congress. Lobbyists help to focus attention on specific issues and use their resources to communicate with various officials associated with the committees covering the topic they want to influence. We as citizens must also look to utilize the communication tools identified in the preceding paragraph to do the same. This is our country and if we do not communicate our opinions to our elected officials at any level then they may make decisions to which we do not agree. One important new aspect is the requirement that President Obama has initiated with his administration is the requirement to document communications from registered lobbyists to his administration. While this may be a welcomed change from past practices there have been some complaints about the restrictions and violations of free speech.
Free speech is an important topic as we all have the right of free speech and I am not going to discuss the details of the battle over the requirements President Obama has implemented. I have written other articles related to the free speech topic. The basic principle of free speech is that we all have a right to express our opinion but it does not require that anyone listen. I welcome the requirement that President Obama has initiated for his administration regarding lobbyist communications. Any documentation of communication with lobbyists whether verbal or written opens the door for more traceability and this is a good thing. The details of the requirement require a record be initiated within 3 days of any communication with a registered lobbyist. I feel the same requirement should be in place for any of our senators and representatives and the information be available to the public. In this way we would be able to see as a voter who is lobbying Congress with their agenda. The actions of lobbyists are not necessarily bad but the public has a right to know what issues are being pushed with regards to actions being taken by Congress. The end result of whether a lobbyist serves a useful purpose depends on their perspective and whether it is for their personal agenda or one which benefits the American citizens.