This course will be an intense examination of lobbying in Washington with particular attention given to the role of money and campaign finance in the operation of what has become a highly sophisticated and poorly under-stood network of advocacy and influence. It will provide a basic understanding of three different but interrelated knowledge sets: the Congress, political money and lobbying by interest groups. Student should understand that while the lectures are focused on those individual subject areas and that the semester is divided into three separate sections for that purpose, the readings later in the term will often relate to earlier lectures. This is done with the intent of “connecting the dots” among all these somewhat diverse topical areas.