The idea of a democracy is that every citizen has equal say in government, but there are people trying to use the persuasion technique of reciprocity to have a greater influence. Interest groups are able to give gifts of time and money to influence policy as an act of political expediency. This influence is expressed through lobbying, political action committees, and litigation.
Interest groups are contributing to political campaigns and political parties to encourage politicians to take positions favorable to their causes through the rule of reciprocity. Reciprocity occurs when one is in a relationship with others that involves mutual giving and receiving. Because interest groups give valuable time and money to politicians campaigns the politicians often feel that they should influence policy in favor of the interest groups.
The government officials feel indebted to the interest group and under a feeling of obligation the politicians are much more likely to agree to requests from the interest groups that have helped them, especially if they are on the fence. However, the rule of reciprocity can be consciously ignored but the rule is still what interest groups hope to have happen. Since the reciprocity rule is not foolproof not all interest groups get the return on their gifts that they hoped for. An example of someone who gave money to politicians to influence policy and succeeded is Roger Tamraz.
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Tamraz wanted to carry oil from Azerbaijan to Turkey, a project that he would make 127 million dollars on. To achieve this policy change Tamraz gave 300,000 dollars to Democrats and officials. He was able to meet with president Clinton six times. Tamara said the only reason he made those contributions was to gain access to the white house, which he achieved. Tamraz felt that he got a good return for the money that he gave. Tamraz’s success was achieved thanks to the reciprocity rule.
The money that industries, companies, and unions spend on lobbying and campaigns is a small amount compared to what they could get in return. Another example of influence in government policy through the rule of reciprocity is Comcast’s influence on new policy for net neutrality: “In the 2016 cycle, 360 House members (out of 435) and 52 senators were recipients of campaign donations from either Comcast’s corporate PAC or employees of the company. Comcast donors gave a total of $3.9 million to congressional candidates” (Leathley). In the 2014 cycle the most pivotal person, John Boehner, received the most funding from Comcast by far, and the same thing occurred with Clinton in the 2016 cycle. Comcast was undoubtedly hoping the rules of reciprocity would influence those they donated to and influence policy on net neutrality in their favor.
The greater return that many interest groups receive for funding different parties and politicians shows how the reciprocity rule does not always yield equal results. The $300,000 gift that Tamraz gave to Democrats and officials is relatively small in comparison to the 127 million dollars he could get in return. The power elite theory says that the rich have the greatest influence in policy. The rule of reciprocity says that when one does not reciprocate when given a gift they are breaking a deeply ingrained social norm and will stand to lose status and a good reputation within society.
Based on the power elite theory if a politician chooses not to reciprocate a gift from interest groups they stand to lose more than their status. If a politician wants to be elected and remain an incumbent it is in their best interest to reciprocate when interest groups help them. The interest groups have a lot of influence on the public and get many people to vote for the candidate they are helping. If it wasn’t for interest groups many of our current government officials would not be in office. If the incumbents do not reciprocate the gift of campaign finance and promotion they received they may not be reelected. The interest groups have a big influence and promote and demote a candidate with their influence. Some people argue that interest groups are not trying to use the rule of reciprocity but are instead are making a transaction to buy influence.
However, due to the fact that the politicians are not required to do what the special interest groups ask them the money and time special interest groups give them becomes a gift rather than a transaction making their choice to help the interest group affected by the reciprocity rule. The influence of reciprocity is constantly occurring every day in every person’s life. The rule of reciprocity is so deeply ingrained within our society’s social norms that it can be hard to notice but it is a concept that we all are constantly feeding into. From small towns to politics in the capital, the influence of reciprocity is everywhere.
