Money in Politics: A Course Component

We are working with faculty to add a section to their course on the problem of money in politics. All of the readings and assignments are web based. They are designed to allow students to examine a range of theories and data and to formulate their own views on the problem and the solution. This version assumes a Monday, Wednesday, Friday class. We can alter the component for a Tuesday/Thursday class. We can also change this into a two week section of a course. Please email our Executive Director, Joan Mandle, for more information.

Typically, faculty can start with the following assignment:

Part 1: An Introductory Assignment

A) The Assignment: To be handed out on Friday

This assignment is the beginning of the section of this course in which we will be discussing the problem of private wealth in politics, and the obstacles current campaign finance practices pose to social change. People hold a variety of opinions about the extent of the problem and possible solutions. Over the next week, we are going to do a series of web based readings and exercises to explore this topic as it relates to the theoretical themes being taken up by this class.

For Monday, you are going to write a 2-3 page reflection piece on the following question: Why do some people believe that there is too much private wealth in politics?” To address the question visit the following web sites:

Democracy Matters is the organization that has developed the curriculum we will be using for this section of the course. It is an organization aimed at deepening democracy by getting private money out of politics. On their homepage, there is a link to What You Need to Know About Money in Politics. Read the part entitled “Why We Need Reform” under Overview. Click on the links and read about the specific issues.

Public Campaign, their Ouch section will show you how money in politics touches each of our lives: You can even sign up for updates on their email list!

B) The Class: Monday

For the first class, many faculty find it helpful to have a guest speaker. Democracy Matters has an active Speaker’s Bureau. We would welcome the chance to help you arrange a speaker. Ideally, we will send one of our staff. We are college professors with extensive speaking experience. In our remarks, we will explain to students how our current system of campaign financing works.

Alternatively, you can lecture and/or give the students an additional reading. The Center For Responsive Politics has a short, clear reading on their website. Their “Influence and Lobbying” section provides a good introduction to the different moneyed forces at play in America‘s political system.

Part 2: What Do The Critics Argue?

A) The Assignment: To be handed out on Monday

For Wednesday, we are going to examine the counterarguments and the ensuing debates. Go back to www.democracymatters.org. Click on What You Need to Know About Money in Politics and under Overview, you will see an article entitled “Answering the Critics“. Read that article. At the bottom of the article, there are links to other websites. Examine those websites. Then go to “Money On My Mind.” Read the one entitled “Eccentrics and Fanatics: Free Speech and Public Financing of Elections.”

Come to class with a page of reading notes. What did you learn? What do the critics argue? Are they right or wrong, or both?

B) The Class: Wednesday

By this point, students should have a lot on their minds. You should be able to facilitate a good classroom discussion. We have often run this session with small group discussions. We put students in groups of 3-4 and let them share their responses. Give each group about 15 minutes to develop a group response. Then have groups share the responses with the class.

Alternatively, you can divide the group into four groups. Assign two of the groups to be pro-campaign finance reform. Assign two groups to be anti-campaign finance reform. Give the groups 10 minutes to prepare their remarks. Have a class debate (one hint: you might consider have the groups present their views. Then give each group five minutes to prepare a rebuttal statement).

Part 3: Exploring Alternatives: Clean Money?

A) The Assignment: To be handed out in class on Wednesday

What are the alternatives? For the last class, we are going to examine an alternative way of financing political campaigns.

Go to https://www.democracymatters.org/ and click on What You Need to Know About Money in Politics, then click on Additional Articles under Overview. Read Financing Elections Democratically. Then read “The Road to Clean Elections” on www.publicampaign.org.

B) The Class: Friday

Public Campaign has produced a wonderful video that explores the effects of public financing of state elections in Maine and Arizona. Consider showing the video. It lasts about 40 minutes.

Alternatively, the first 20 minutes of the video explore the 2000 Maine elections. Consider showing half the movie and then asking for students’ response. We can provide copies of the movie.

Finishing The Section

There are three ways to finish the component:

1. You can do nothing. On Monday, you can start another section of the course. You can test the material in the next mid-term or other graded assignment.

2. You can give students a short writing assignment. Consider something like the following:

We have spent the last week examining the issue of campaign finance reform, as a way to broadly examine the issue of money in politics. For Monday, write a 4-6 page reflection piece. Is there too much money in politics? Should we consider publicly financing elections?

Answers should be typed, double-spaced, with one inch margins on all sides. Your response should be a thoughtful, logical argument. You might consider referencing other issues and readings we have done this term.

Again, the following web sites might be useful:

The Center for Responsive Politics
Public Campaign
Common Cause
The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law

3. You can give students a longer research paper. Students could work on this assignment while you did other components to the course. Here are two examples of longer research papers.

Research Paper Option #1:

Choose a large corporation (TNC) (e.g., Pfizer, Citigroup, IBM, Aetna, Ralston-Purina, Westinghouse, TRW, Astra-Zeneca, General Foods, Cargill, Warner-Lambert, Texaco, Ford, ADM, Mattel, Texas Instruments, The Gap, Sears, etc.) and analyze its efforts to shape public policy. Your analysis should address the following questions:

A. What are the interests of the corporation in shaping public policy?

B. Was campaign financing used to influence the outcomes of government legislation?

C. What efforts were made by “countervailing forces” to promote alternative legislative or in other ways challenge the corporation?

D. What role has the media played in informing the public about the activities of the corporation?

E. What role have social movements played in promoting alternative government policy and policy-makers? Have these efforts been successful? Why/why not?

Again, this assignment requires that you utilize substantive and theoretical points from the course readings and class discussions. Apply our theoretical readings and discussions of social structure, culture, socialization, and their related concepts, or other relevant topics or issues, to your specific corporation. Citation of facts and theories presented by authors is essential. Also, you will need to do extensive additional research to get data on the corporation that you have chosen, including books, journal articles and web sites. Bibliographic references are required.

Answers should be typed, double-spaced, with one inch margins on all sides. Your answers should be 10-12 full pages in length.

A note on research sources: You might want to look at popular periodicals (newspapers and magazines) using Lexis-Nexis. Also explore the publications and web sites of corporate watch dog and social movement groups, congressional and electoral watch dog groups as well as corporation’s web sites, advertising and publications. You should get a copy of their annual report if possible, and you may also want to find out where its charitable contributions are made, and what sort of industry trade groups it is a member of.

Again, the following web sites might be useful:

The Center for Responsive Politics
Public Campaign
Common Cause
The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law

Research Paper Option #2:

Earlier in this course we talked about a variety of pressing social issues. Write a lengthy essay on the connections between these issues and the need for getting money out of politics. You should address: a) how money is used to shape politics and public policy, b) how this relates to the particular issues we have talked about in this class, and c) give specific examples. You should conclude by describing what you think are the most effective ways for addressing this issue. Also address whether you think there a particular kind of social movement that would be most effective in working toward social equality. Explain what conditions would promote such efforts (e.g., what changes to the social structure, culture, economy, or other social institutions). Finally, describe the conditions in our society that create the greatest barriers to social change.

This assignment requires that you utilize substantive and theoretical points from the course readings and class discussions. Apply our theoretical readings and discussions of social structure, culture, socialization, and their related concepts, or other relevant topics or issues. Citation of facts and theories presented by authors is essential. Also, you will need to do extensive additional research to get data on the transnational corporation that you have chosen, including books, journal articles and web sites. Bibliographic references are required.

Answers should be typed, double-spaced, with one inch margins on all sides. Your answers should be 10-12 full pages in length.

A note on research sources: You might want to look at popular periodicals (newspapers and magazines) using Lexis-Nexis. Also explore the publications and web sites of corporate watch dog and social movement groups, congressional and electoral watch dog groups as well as TNC web sites, advertising and publications. You should get a copy of the TNC’s annual report if possible, and you may also want to find out where its charitable contributions are made, and what sort of industry trade groups it is a member of.

Again, the following web sites might be useful:

The Center for Responsive Politics
Public Campaign
Common Cause
The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law