ABSTRACT
One of the central questions associated with lobbying is whether interest groups can influence outcomes in Congress through their lobbying activity. They are widely assumed to do so. In an interview about the legislative process associated with fiscal cliff negotiations, a senator made the following observation:
Look, I’m not in the room so I can’t say with certainty, but I am very hopeful that they are making progress. And look, it would be wise on their part not to come too quickly with a deal, because that would give all the interest groups a chance to get organized and try to kill it. And we know that on the right, on the left, special interest groups are just salivating at the chance to attack any agreement. 1
