Interest Groups

It is commonly state that the President of the United States of America is one of the most powerful persons in the free world. However due to the restriction set by our constitution and a system of checks and balances, these powers are split between the Executive, Judicial and Legislative branches. The president being a part of the executive branch his/her main role is to approve or veto bills that have gone through the legislation introduction and voting process. With the veto process, congress have the ability to override the president’s decision to veto a bill, with two-thirds majority vote from members of the house or representatives and the senate. One other stipulation is if the president decides or do not respond to the bill proposal
These interest groups help bridge the gap between citizens and the government and enable citizens to explain their views on policies to public officials. These groups would help provide public officials with detailed information that might be difficult to obtain, which in return help make policy choices better. Just as how there are checks and balances for the government, some interest groups serve as a check of public officials to make sure they are carrying out their duties responsibly. An interest group can lobby members of congress to act in the interest of the group. For example, “if the senate passes a bill opposed by the group, the groups lobbying efforts can shift to the House of Representatives. If the house passes the bill, the group can try to influence the new law’s application by lobbying the executive agency that is responsible for implementing the law. The group might even directly challenge the law in court or by filing a brief as a friend of the court.”(Sidlow & Henschen 128) There are a vast number of interest group and they all serve as a liaison for a specific topic that meet the needs for some if not most