blog




  • Essay / Influence of Interest Groups on the Problem of Global Warming

    Global warming has been an issue that has been debated many times. Some people believe this is a human-caused problem, while others believe there isn't enough evidence to support it. It’s an issue that isn’t always addressed consistently, but one that ebbs and flows as events and national mood shifts. Global warming is not a high-priority issue on the government agenda in the United States due to the degree of skepticism associated with it and the nature of the political mainstream. The issue of global warming is something of a political party issue. Additionally, in the United States, industries that contribute heavily to pollution have powerful interest groups working to their advantage to advance their best interests. The events needed to resolve the problem are not always consistent. This leads to inconsistent and unpredictable policy windows. All of these things contribute to a controversial topic that is difficult to pass many laws on and is not high on the agenda. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay One of the reasons why global warming is not ranked high on the agenda is because the issue has been confined to view. in a particular way based on political party affiliation. Events in government between political parties hinder progress in passing laws when one party holds to one view and the other does the same. Within the Republican Party, many seem to agree that the scientific data demonstrating that global warming is a human-caused problem “is not resolved.” Meanwhile, Democrats like Barack Obama have championed the issue of global warming. The president's political interests are difficult to achieve if the two political parties are divided on their views. The level of skepticism associated with the topic of global warming between political parties and their supporters makes it difficult to put this issue on the agenda. According to Kingdon, “the search for consensus within the political movement is governed by negotiation”. If the Democrats have nothing to negotiate with the Republicans, then the Republican point of view remains firm and policies on global warming remain difficult to implement. Therefore, this led Barack Obama to focus on pro-economy jobs, as it was a measure that could be adopted, instead of directly addressing global warming. Another reason why global warming is not high on the agenda in the United States is the impact. of interest groups. America has a very powerful fossil fuel industry. Interest groups within the fossil fuel industry do not want any reform or legislation to be passed to help curb global warming. This would significantly affect their profits and business. Any legislation that negatively impacts these industries could result in fewer jobs. Interest groups put pressure on government actors and use their connections within government to tip the scales in their favor. They do everything in their power to prevent changes from happening, and they are very effective at doing so.that they do. When powerful interest groups are at work, politicians "usually don't raise an issue rather than see their energy and capital wasted on a losing cause." The impact of interest groups and their connections within government make them a very powerful force for influencing policy one way or another. It is much easier for politicians to forget an issue because of the considerable impact of interest groups. The national mood is how the general public and mass population feel about the government or the government itself. The national mood allows government actors to have an idea of ​​which issues and policies are likely to make it onto the decision-making agenda and which do not. The national mood can change, and members of government have the ability to gauge the national mood based on a few factors. Based on feedback from major meetings, incoming mail or even social media, government actors can sense how the national mood is changing and which direction it is leaning. The change in national mood allows certain policies to advance and gain prominence and serves to “prevent others from gaining prominence.” When the general public has a certain opinion on an issue, politicians do not try to pass legislation that goes against the national mood, because this would lead to a decrease in the number of supporters. Politicians try to “jump on the bandwagon” for their own benefit. They want to be re-elected, which is why they always act based on the opinion of the general public. In the case of global warming, any policy affecting a particular sector can have negative consequences on the economy. Job creation was already “a more pressing issue than the environment,” showing why global warming is not high on the agenda. Compared to other points, these receive more attention and are considered more important problems that need to be solved. Focused events are events that occur that put an issue on the agenda and can open a policy window. open. A policy window is a period of time during which people from all three streams converge and interact with each other. Depending on how their interaction goes, legislation may or may not pass. Whenever policy windows present themselves, they “only stay open for short periods.” However, the targeted events are not always consistent and are quite unpredictable when it comes to global warming. Targeted events include things like hurricanes and periods of drought or excessive precipitation. These targeted events typically cause a change in the national mood that favors the passage of legislation on a specific issue. They have the ability to raise awareness about an issue that may not have been widely known before. These unpredictable events therefore lead to policy windows that are also unpredictable. When Hurricane Sandy hit, the national mood changed for a time as the issue of global warming contributing to more severe storms was raised. However, over time, this issue no longer remained a hot topic, as interest in this issue declined and, as a result, global warming seemingly disappeared from the agenda. The window of opportunity for passing legislation was relatively short and, as with the occurrence of focused events, global warming did not..