this standard, for example, retirees are not a special interest.
To estimate the influence of special in- terests, Peterson measures the percentage of the gross national product (GNP) spent the federal government on activities "not of paramount interest" to the two ma- jor political parties. That means all federal outlays not spent on the public debt, de- fense, benefits for the elderly, "safety net" programs for the poor, and agricultural subsidies important to the farm states...