Government and politics concepts · AP U.S. Government and Politics, AP U.S. History
Iron triangle
Iron triangle: A stable relationship among a congressional committee, a bureaucratic agency and an interest group that work together on policy in a specific area.
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What it means
Each side benefits: the interest group provides information and political support, the committee provides funding and favorable laws, and the agency implements policies that serve the group's interests. Critics say iron triangles can favor narrow interests over the public good.
Issue networks are a looser version that includes more participants, such as experts and the media.
Example
An agriculture committee, the Department of Agriculture and farm lobbying groups working together on farm subsidies form an iron triangle.
On the exam
Iron triangles appear in Unit 2 questions on the bureaucracy and Unit 5 questions on interest groups.