In this assignment, students will be required to write a response to the following prompt:

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is deeply embedded in our contemporary politics as an interest group. Specifically, ALEC as a think tank that has written model legislation that is passed in state legislatures all over the U.S. Given it’s size, many watchdogs an liberal groups consider ALEC to be the epitome of what’s wrong with lobbying and the influence of interest groups in the U.S.A… However, is it different than other interest groups?

Has ALEC simply beaten other interest groups at the political game, or does ALEC actually pose an anti-democratic threat to the integrity of the legislative process?