with Dr. Wendy Li, SNF Agora Postdoctoral Fellow
How do corporations influence U.S. public policy? A growing literature on lobbying and interest groups has identified the “revolving door,” or the circulation of policy professionals between public office and corporate lobbying, as a way for lobbying firms to sell access to government officials. However, most studies of revolving door lobbying focus on the financial benefits it provides for lobbyists and lobbying firms, particularly when government officials exit public service to become lobbyists. In this talk, Li proposes a two-level framework for understanding the revolving door as a mechanism for 1) individuals to convert and accumulate social and cultural capital over the course of their careers, and 2) organizations to convert money into government access and cultural legitimacy. Drawing on interviews with 53 policy professionals, Li illustrates how policy professionals circulate across sectors to build social and cultural capital, seek opportunities for capital conversion and accumulation, and mobilize such capital on behalf of their employers, in pursuit of political influence and power. Li concludes by discussing how this revolving door framework enhances our understanding of corporate power, state-society relations, and American democracy.
Where: SNF Agora Institute, Wyman N325F or Zoom