The business of America is lobbying How corporations became politicized and politics became more corporate

This major work provides a sophisticated examination of the growth in the scope and influence of corporate lobbying in Congress. Extensive interviews conducted with those who lobby for corporate America, combined with data from the required filings made by lobbyists, inform the study. Mini-case studies highlight lobbying efforts by selected industries. The extent of business influence peddlers in Washington is documented with analyses of the conditions under which groups concentrate most heavily on lobbying. Statistical models test explanations for the growth in corporate lobbying. Once a company engages a lobbyist, the tendency is to expand those efforts and pursue its own unique objectives. Working through trade associations remains common only among smaller corporations. In this first recent study, the author notes that corporate lobbying has become more proactive and pervasive as lobbyists have educated managers about the advantages of having a Washington presence. The author is concerned that powerful business interests jockeying for advantage, often unchecked by lobbyists for other interests, distort national policy priorities and are a major contributor to congressional gridlock. The last chapter presents multiple suggestions for reining in the power of business lobbyists. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through professionals. --Charles S. Bullock, University of Georgia