试论外国院外集团活动及其对美国对外政策的影响

美国作为全球唯一的超级大国 ,其对外政策关系到世界各国和国外利益集团的切身利益。各种代表国家和集团利益的外国院外集团为维护各自国家、民族和集团的利益 ,通过委托美国游说公司和具有特殊背景的人作为代理 ,在美国设立官方、民间机构 ,争取美国内具有共同利益的特殊集团的支持等方式进行院外活动 ,影响美国对外政策。因此 ,外国院外集团成为影响美国对外政策的重要因素 ,对美国对外政策的调整变化起着至关重要的作用     

美国对华汇率外交中的利益集团政治

21世纪伊始,美国对中国发起了汇率外交攻势,这既有敲打中国的战略谋划,也有利益集团政治的复杂背景。国外学者从开放、制度和国家一社会的视角研究了利益集团的汇率政策偏好、利益集团将其转化为政策产出的机制及所面临的约束,但其研究方法、对象、层次和视角存在一定的不足。利益集团之所以能影响美国对华汇率外交,是因为基于美国政治体制的汇率政策决策。实践中,美国保护性经济利益集团和"院外援华集团"围绕人民币汇率展开了激烈博弈,中国相关经济利益集团也通过本国政府寻求影响。为化解汇率外交压力,中国需在微观层面巩固和扩大"相容利益",以争取更多美国利益集团的支持;在宏观层面通过双边和多边渠道,有理、有据、有节地坚持在人民币汇率问题上的原则和立场。     

利益集团在欧盟指令草案政策咨询中的参与分析

欧盟成员国的利益集团如何参与并影响欧盟的立法程序?对此问题本文以欧盟委员会2008-2010年间所提交的20份指令草案为基础,通过分析德国、英国、荷兰和瑞典4个民族国家的利益集团以及欧盟层面利益集团参与草案咨询的数据,揭示了利益集团在欧盟多层级体制下如何面对欧盟机构和民族国家机构表达它们的利益,并对本文所提出的5项假说进行了实证的验证。     

台湾游说集团对美国国会的游说——以台北经济文化代表处和台湾人公共事务协会为例

台湾游说集团是美国重要的院外利益集团,曾经长期影响美国政府的对华决策。冷战后,台湾游说集团经历了一个分化重组的过程,呈现出台北经济文化代表处和台湾人公共事务协会分庭抗礼的局面。两者由于在政治诉求上存在着差异,自诞生之日起就存在着竞争关系。此外,两者推出的议案在国会审议的过程中还要受到中美关系、国会、行政部门,以及各种危机等因素的制约。这两大组织有时候也携手合作,通过影响国会内部舆论,在国会内部编织人脉网络,吸纳具有类似观点的利益集团加入等手段尽可能地规避不利因素,将自身利益最大化。     

德国利益集团行为的公共利益导向

在德国，随着利益集团在经济社会中地位的不断提升，以及它们越来越多地参与承担或独立承担公共任务，提出了国家维护公共利益的职能是否被利益集团侵蚀，以及利益集团行为能否兼顾公共利益的问题。本文从利益中介理论（多元主义、合作主义和政策网络学说）对利益集团与公共利益关系的论述出发，结合20世纪70年代德国有关利益集团立法的讨论，探讨了有助于利益集团行为以公共利益为导向的内部和外部因素。     

当代美国印第安人利益集团活动评析

利益集团活动是美国社会一种通过自由结社影响政策以表达诉求、实现利益的途径。印第安人利益集团活动兴起于美国民权时代的一系列政治运动,随着美国对文化多样性宽容度的提高、泛印第安人意识与运动的扩展、联邦资助机制的推出与改革、印第安人经济与社会的发展,随后又扩展于印第安人与美国政府的各种磋商、谈判中。这种以特定种族、族群为背景的利益集团活动,不仅推动美国由传统的政治、经济多元主义扩展为政治、经济、文化等各方面的多元主义,也将原本美国、西方政治传统中内在的多元主义植入了印第安人当中,从而改变了印第安民族的状况与命运。相应,当代印第安人利益集团活动出现了多元化、去激进化、常态化、与联邦政府互动增强等趋势,印第安民族的美国化、公民化进程也由此提速,甚至出现了族群化的迹象。     

利益集团与美国的中东研究

利益集团将中东研究视为影响美国中东政策的一个重要因素,积极推动相关领域朝着有利于自己的方向发展。美国三权分立的政治体制和开放的政治过程,中东研究与国家利益和商业利益的密切关系,以及美国中东研究学者的"中东化",都为利益集团影响美国的中东研究创造了条件。利益集团推动了美国中东研究的繁荣和发展,但同时试图限制和干预学者的研究,并将中东地区的政治分歧带入美国学术界。学术界的自律、国家的制度化支持以及利益集团之间的相互制约,使美国的中东研究学界能够保持较高的学术质量。     

国家承诺的可信性:理论争议和一个新的视角

国际危机或国际合作中的承诺能够显示国家意图,并影响国际危机及合作的发展方向。主流研究支持"民主可信论",即民主国家的承诺更可信。但最新的定性和定量研究均对这一主张提出了挑战。文章主要基于国际危机中的承诺,梳理并评述了国家承诺可信性研究的各学派观点,指出国家承诺可信性未来的研究方向应从微观视角来研究国内各利益集团的博弈,以及从执政者对他们利益的权衡取舍出发。通过对美国和加拿大的案例考察,文章认为,国家承诺可信与否不在于国家的政权类型,而在于国家领导人为了其致胜联盟成员及其自身政治生存的利益最大化而做出的选择。     

合作主义理论在德国的发展与实践

德国的利益中介体制包含着许多合作主义特征，从国际比较看，德国属于中等强度的合作主义国家。本文旨在分析德国有关利益集团以及利益中介体制理论（多元主义、新多元主义和合作主义）的讨论，从中揭示合作主义理论在德国的发展过程，在此基础上，主要从宏观层面论述德国合作主义的具体实践及其面临的问题与挑战。     

美国对海底权利的诉求与国内利益的平衡——以海底界限的争论为中心(1969～1972)

美国海底政策的出台在很大程度上取决于国内利益的平衡.本文从政府部门间、利益集团闻及部门机构与利益集团闻相互博弈的角度,对影响美国海洋政策转向的因素进行探讨.文章认为,1945年<杜鲁门公告>是美国首次海底权利声明,在美国国内引起了关于是否扩展大陆架权利的争论.从美国政府内部关于宽狭大陆架界限的分歧到利益集团关于经济利益与军事利益的争论,其中的分歧或趋同主导了尼克松政府在海底界限问题上的两次政策转向.最终美国将海底问题交由联合国,回归国际海洋体系.这反映出美国国内部门、集团利益在美国海洋决策中的地位和作用.     

欧盟利益集团研究:概念、重要性及影响力

欧盟利益集团研究虽然已经有了多年的进展,但仍未形成共识性的概念和理论框架。本文从概念和研究议题出发,分析了欧盟利益集团研究的重要性、面临的问题以及未来的发展方向。文章认为,欧盟利益集团研究需要在统一概念和理论框架下对已有的各个角度的相关研究进行统和,进而形成较为完备的适合欧盟这一特殊政治实体的利益集团研究体系,这是目前该研究领域迫切需要突破之处。     

集团博弈与公共利益--以马来西亚政治为例的研究

作为公共利益的具体表现,无论是马来西亚的法律制度,还是其经济社会发展政策,都是一种利益博弈的结果.博弈的规则、利益集团的力量大小、策略选择是否得当都对博弈的结果即公共利益的形成具有重要影响,其中博弈规则的影响最为关键.在既定规则下,作为一个利益集团,要想在利益博弈中,尽可能取得较多的利益,必须尽可能加强自己的力量,在博弈过程中,采取理性的策略,否则可能会一招不慎,满盘皆输,自己集团的利益在制度或政策(公共利益的具体体现)中也难以得到照顾.     

Preferring Rome to Brussels: Mapping Interest Group Europeanisation in Italy

ABSTRACT

How much do Italian interest groups undertake their advocacy/lobbying activities at the EU level? How often have groups gained access to different EU level institutions? This paper presents an original conceptualisation for the concept of ‘interest group Europeanisation’, which takes into account both the percentage of EU lobbying and access to EU institutions, and assesses the role of national centrality (i.e. access to national institutional venues and self-perceived influence in national policy-making) in determining whether there is more or less interest group Europeanisation. Original data from a national survey conducted on around 500 Italian interest groups are provided. Groups that are at the core of the national interest system are less likely to undertake a large part of their lobbying activities at the EU level, but more likely to gain EU access.     

The More,the Merrier? Interest Groups and Legislative Change in the Public Hearings of the German Parliamentary Committees

The article examines the impact of organised interests on the passage of legislation in the German Bundestag through an empirical analysis of the position papers presented in the public hearings of its standing committees in 2011. These committees are the most important forums to revise legislative proposals. Drawing on resource dependency theory, we employ GLM regression analyses to study if interest groups act as change agents that bring legislation closer to their own policy preferences. Controlling for institutional and bill characteristics, we discuss two major findings that shed light on the role of interest groups in legislation. First, business groups' opposition to government bills triggers legislative changes because their members control the means of production and make investment decisions. In contrast, fundamental opposition of non-business groups has no impact. Second, bills debated and opposed by a greater number of interest groups undergo more changes pointing to the importance of the density of interest groups and balance of opinions on a proposal.     

Solving south Africa's Chinese puzzle: Democratic foreign policy making and the ‘two chinas’ question

When President Nelson Mandela abruptly announced on 27 November 1996 that South Africa would no longer recognise the Republic of China but would open official diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China in its stead, he caught the world by surprise. In what was a fittingly bizarre end to a situation that continued to defy all expectations, the post‐apartheid government made its first significant foreign policy decision. The remarkable level of public debate, the inter‐departmental conflicts, the role of interest groups and party politics which accompanied the decision to switch recognition gave the South African government and the public as a whole its first exposure to the vagaries of conducting foreign policy in a democracy.

This article will examine the decision to recognise the People's Republic of China by investigating the historical relationship between the South African state, non‐state actors and their Chinese counterparts, the debate itself and the role of interest groups ‐ both within and outside the formal policy making process ‐ in seeking to influence the decision and analysing the dynamics of the recognition decision. In so doing, it hopes to shed some light on the policy decision making process in the new democratic South Africa.     

Defining Interests: Disambiguation and the Need for New Distinctions?

This article notes the systemic lack of conceptual clarity in the social sciences and attempts to illustrate the adverse consequences by closer examination of the particular example of the interest group field. It indicates the significant ambiguities implicit in the term. Not all policy-influencing organisations are interest groups as normally understood, but because there is a lack of an appropriate label the term interest group is used by default. The article seeks to distinguish between interest groups and other policy relevant bodies—often corporations or institutions. It finds disadvantages in adopting a functional interpretation of the interest group term (i.e. any organisation trying to influence public policy). While the wider range of organisations are crucial in understanding the making of public policy, it is confusing to assume that this wider population are all interest groups. The article instead advances the complementary notions of pressure participant, policy participant and interest group. This slightly expanded repertoire of terms avoids conflating important distinctions, and, in Sartori's term permits 'disambiguation'. The core assumption is that the search for comparative data and exploration of normative questions implies some harmonisation in the interest group currency.     

Interests groups in Parliament: Exploring MPs’ interest affiliations (2000‐2011)

This research note presents an innovative dataset of Swiss MPs’ interest ties between 2000‐2011. The longitudinal analysis shows that the average number of interest ties per MP has more than doubled: from 3.5 in 2000 to 7.6 in 2011. Since the mid‐2000s, public interest groups have accounted for approximately one out of two ties between MPs and interest groups, showing the strongest increase during the period. However, when looking at the most present individual groups, important business groups dominate and appear well connected with the governmental parties of the political right. Finally, interest groups are also able to forge themselves a strategic presence within the parliamentary committees that are the most relevant for their policy issues. Next research steps include the assessment of the (un)biased access of interest groups to the parliamentary venue and their policy influence.     

The Rise of Citizen Groups within the Administration and Parliament in Switzerland

This research note presents three newly interconnected and expanded datasets on interest groups’ (IGs) access to the Swiss political decision‐making process: (1) extra‐parliamentary committee seats occupied by IGs (1980, 2000, 2010), (2) parliamentary (committee) seats occupied by IG representatives (1992‐2015), and (3) consultation replies submitted by IGs (2008‐11). We show that the Swiss system of interest intermediation adapted to the multiplication and organizational consolidation of citizen groups, which defend non‐producer interests and do not provide selective benefits to their members (e.g. environmental groups). The share of access granted to citizen groups has increased in both the administration and parliament, across all federal departments and most legislative committees. Moreover, citizen groups benefit from a larger share of access in the recently revitalized parliament, compared to the administration. This suggests that economic groups’ decline in power is also related to the rise of citizen groups.     

The catch‐all party thesis and the Austrian social democrats

This article examines Kirchheimer's catch‐all party thesis systematically, using the example of the Austrian Socialist Party (SPÖ). First, five central elements of the Kirchheimer catch‐all party are identified and possibilities for empirical research are explored. Then the empirical evidence on these five dimensions is analysed. As Kirchheimer has expected, the SPÖ's ‘ideological baggage’ has been drastically reduced, its top leadership groups and its electoral leader in particular have been further strengthened, the working‐class clientele has been de‐emphasised, and the party's function in the political system has been substantially reduced. Concerning the SPÖ's link to interest groups, however, Kirchheimer's thesis is only valid when looking at the most recent period. In view of the cumulative effect of the changes in the direction of a catch‐all party the SPÖ of the 1990s can definitely be classified as a catch‐all party.     

东盟的地理整体与利益整体意识--东盟意识与东盟的发展(Ⅱ)

东盟从其成立之初就具有一种强烈的地理整体意识和利益整体意识.正是由于其具有强烈的地理整体意识,东盟才能够克服内部的分歧和排除外部的各种阻力,吸收越南、缅甸、老挝和柬埔寨加入东盟,使其成为一个包括所有东南亚国家的国际组织.正是由于其具有强烈的利益整体意识,东盟才能够争取到其单个成员所无法得到的利益,而且在面对西方大国的压力时,能够采取一种强硬的立场,很好地维护其成员或准成员的利益和尊严.