Researchers have generally stressed the limited influence of PAC contributions on roll calls. The author contends that an important reason for the failure to confirm an impact stems from the nature of issues and PACs studied. To demonstrate the point, this research is targeted at circumstances of particular promise for PAC influence involving issues of low visibility with little competition among organized groups and featuring PACs with strong potential for centralized decision making. Results of the analysis indicate an impressive impact and imply that the potential for PAC influence on roll calls may be greater than is commonly perceived. Still open is the question of how much impact PAC contributions have in legislative roll calls generally.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Aldrich, John, and Charles Cnudde.1975. Probing the bounds of conventional wisdom: A comparison of regression, probit, and discriminant analysis. American Journal of Political Science19:571-608.
2.
Barone, Michael, Grant Ujifusa, and Douglas Matthews .1977. The almanac of American politics . New York: Dutton.
3.
Brown, Anthony E.1987. The politics of airline deregulation. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press.
4.
Brown, Kirk F.1983. Campaign contributions and congressional voting . Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, Chicago, Illinois .
5.
Chappell, Henry W.1981. Campaign contributions and voting on the Cargo Preference Bill: A comparison of simultaneous models. Public Choice36:301-12.
6.
—. 1982. Campaign contributions and congressional voting: A simultaneous probit-tobit model. Review of Economics and Statistics64:77-83.
7.
Congressional Quarterly.1973. Congressional districts in the 1970s. Washington, DC: Congressional Quarterly Press.
8.
Evans, Diana.1983. PAC contributions and House voting on conflictual and consensual issues: The windfall profits tax and the Chrysler loan guarantee . Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, Chicago.
9.
—. 1988. Oil PACs and aggressive contribution strategies . Journal of Politics50:1047-56.
10.
Frendreis, John P., and Richard W. Waterman.1985. PAC contributions and legislative behavior: Senate voting on trucking deregulation. Social Science Quarterly, 66:401-12.
11.
Gais, Thomas, Mark Peterson, and Jack Walker.1984. Interest groups, iron triangles, and representative institutions in America national government. British Journal of Political Science14:161-85.
12.
Gopoian, J. David.1984. What makes PACs tick? An analysis of the allocation of economic interest groups. American Journal of Political Science28:259-81.
13.
Grenzke, Janet.1989a. PACs and the congressional supermarket: The currency is complex. American Journal of Political Science33:1-24.
14.
—. 1989b. Candidate attributes and PAC contributions. Western Political Quarterly42:245-64.
15.
Hall, Richard L., and Frank W. Wayman.1990. Buying time: Moneyed interests and the mobilization of bias in congressional committees. American Political Science Review84:797-820.
16.
Jones, Woodrow, and Robert Keiser.1987. Issue visibility and the effects of PAC money. Social Science Quarterly68:170-76.
17.
Kane, Robert M., and Allan Vose.1982. Air transportation. 8th ed. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt .
18.
Kau, James B., and Paul H. Rubin.1982. Congressmen, constituents, and contributors. Boston: Martinus Nijihoff.
—. 1984. Agendas, alternatives, and public policies. Boston: Little, Brown.
21.
Malbin, Michael.1979. Campaign financing and the "special interests."The Public Interest56:21-42.
22.
—. 1980. Of mountains and molehills: PACs, campaigns, and public policy. In Parnes, interest groups, and campaign finance laws , edited by Michael Malbin.Washington, DC: American Enterprise Institute .
23.
Peltzman, Sam.1984. Constituent interest and congressional voting. Journal of Law and Economics27:181-210.
24.
Price, David.1978. Policy making in congressional committees: The impact of "environmental" factors. American Political Science Review72:548-74.
Sabato, Larry.1984. PAC power: Inside the world of political action committees . New York: Norton.
27.
Salisbury, Robert.1984. Interest representation: The dominance of institutions . American Political Science Review78:64-76.
28.
Saltzman, Gregory.1987. Congressional voting on labor issues: The role of PACs . Industrial and Labor Relations Review40:163-79.
29.
Schroedel, Jean Reith.1986. Campaign contributions and legislative outcomes . Western Political Quarterly39:671-82.
30.
Silberman, Jonathan, and Gary Durden.1976. Determining legislative preference on minimum wage: An economic approach. Journal of Political Economy84:317-29.
31.
U.S. Department of Commerce.1980. County business patterns. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
32.
Weinberger, Marvin, and David Greevy.1982. The PAC directory. Cambridge, MA: Ballinger.
33.
Welch, Susan, and John Comer.1988. Quantitative methods for public administration . 2d ed. Chicago: Dorsey Press.
34.
Welch, W.P.1982. Campaign contributions and legislative voting: Milk money and dairy price supporters. Western Pohtical Quarterly35:478-95.
35.
Wright, John.1985. PACs, contributions, and roll calls: An organizational perspective. American Political Science Review79:400-14.
