America's Political Corruption Laws: A Historical Overview

Political corruption in the United States has been a perennial issue, with its roots in the country's founding. The American Revolution was, in part, a response to the perceived corruption of the British monarchy. While the separation of powers and freedom of association were developed to enable accountability, corruption has persisted and evolved over time.

The First Congress passed the first federal law against bribery in 1789, targeting customs officers. Over the following centuries, various statutes and laws were enacted to address different forms of corruption, such as the Hobbs Act in 1934, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in 1977, and the federal program bribery statute in 1984.

The history of political corruption in the US is complex and multifaceted, with notable scandals and investigations occurring throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, such as the Watergate scandal during Richard Nixon's presidency and the Teapot Dome scandal during Warren G. Harding's administration.

Today, the FBI is responsible for investigating corruption, and it continues to be a significant issue, with concerns about the erosion of ethical norms and the increasing complexity of corruption schemes.

Political corruption in the Gilded Age

Political corruption in the United States has been a perennial issue, with peaks during the Jacksonian era and the Gilded Age, before declining with the Progressive Era reforms. The Gilded Age, from 1870 to 1900, was a period of prosperity and growth in the US, but this growth corresponded with an increase in corruption and bribery in the government and business sectors.

During the Gilded Age, the spoils system was a significant issue, where government jobs were given in exchange for political support. This was addressed through civil service reform. The presidency of Ulysses S. Grant, for instance, was marred by instances of corruption, such as the Whiskey Ring, the Star Route scandal, and the trader post scandal. Grant's lack of political experience left him unable to control or regulate his government members, who took advantage of his inexperience.

The vast corporate wealth and a fee-based governance structure fuelled widespread corruption. By 1890, the country's 4,000 millionaires held 20% of the nation's wealth, and with this affluence came colossal political corruption. Corporations could buy politicians, and politicians took bribes and demanded kickbacks.

Railroads were at the forefront of this corruption. The federal government helped finance huge infrastructure projects by granting over 150 million acres of land to railroad companies, which were then sold to raise revenue. Railroad companies bribed public officials, and in the most notorious instance, Union Pacific Railroad executives formed a sham construction company, Crédit Mobilier, which submitted inflated bills for the construction of the eastern portion of the Transcontinental Railroad and pocketed the overcharges.

Urban political machines, such as New York City's Tammany Hall, gained power and kickbacks by doling out lucrative public offices. They also fixed elections, committed voter fraud, and took bribes when awarding contracts. Tammany Hall leader William "Boss" Tweed and his associates stole between $45 million and $200 million in city funds (worth billions in today's money).

Political machines manipulated voters to place candidates loyal to the machines in power. Public offices were sold for money or political support, and private interests bribed government officials for special treatment. However, unlike many developing countries today, the US had a free press, an honest federal judiciary, and citizen activists who led the reaction against corruption in the early 20th century.

The Progressive Era brought an end to the corruption of the Gilded Age, with muckraking reporters exposing political corruption and paving the way for reforms under President Theodore Roosevelt, including tax and election reforms and limitations on corporate power.

The Progressive Era's anti-corruption efforts

The Progressive Era, which took place between 1890 and the 1920s, was a period of anti-corruption fervour in the United States. It was led by the progressive movement, which sought to restore economic individualism and political democracy, and was marked by the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt.

During this time, political machines and monopolies were targeted and disestablished. Roosevelt, a prominent figure in the Progressive Era, led the trustbusting efforts, vigorously enforcing the Sherman Antitrust Act to break up industrial behemoths. He was also the first president to threaten to use the army on behalf of labour during a 1902 coal miners' strike.

The Progressive Era saw a wave of reforms aimed at reducing government corruption and increasing democratic participation. These included:

• Breaking the power of corporations and trusts: Political corruption was rampant during the Gilded Age, with corporations bribing politicians to ensure government policies favoured big businesses over workers. Progressives sought to break up these monopolies and trusts, and regulate corporations and railroads.
• Civil service reform: Progressives worked to replace the spoils system, in which government jobs were given in exchange for political support, with a merit-based system that appointed and promoted civil servants based on qualifications and performance.
• Expanding voting rights: Progressives pushed for greater democratisation of government and the expansion of voting rights to reduce the power of political machines. This included the direct election of senators and women's suffrage.
• Labour reforms: Progressives advocated for labour unions and improved working conditions for workers, including the eight-hour workday, minimum wage, and workers' compensation for industrial accidents.
• Education reforms: Progressives supported educational reforms such as teacher pensions, free textbooks, mandatory kindergartens, and the creation of a comprehensive curriculum.
• Temperance and prohibition: Many Progressives supported the temperance movement, which led to the enactment of Prohibition through the 18th Amendment.

The Progressive Era was a significant period in American history, marked by a wave of political, economic, and social reforms aimed at reducing corruption and increasing democratic participation. These reforms had a lasting impact on the country, shaping modern American politics and society.

The Watergate scandal

Political corruption in the United States has been a perennial issue since the country's founding. The country's anti-corruption laws were instituted in the Progressive Era, a period of anti-corruption fervour led by the progressive movement.

Following the arrests, both the press and the Department of Justice connected the money found on the burglars to the Committee for the Re-Election of the President (CRP), the fundraising arm of Nixon's campaign. Journalists from The Washington Post, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, pursued leads provided by a source they called "Deep Throat" (later identified as Mark Felt, associate director of the FBI) and uncovered a massive campaign of political spying and sabotage directed by White House officials and illegally funded by donor contributions.

Nixon dismissed the accusations and went on to win the election in November 1972. However, further investigation and revelations from the burglars' trial led the Senate to establish a special Watergate Committee and the House of Representatives to grant its Judiciary Committee expanded authority in February 1973. The burglars received lengthy prison sentences and began a flood of testimony from witnesses. In April 1973, Nixon appeared on television to deny wrongdoing and announce the resignation of his aides.

After it was revealed that Nixon had installed a voice-activated taping system in the Oval Office, his administration refused to grant investigators access to the tapes, leading to a constitutional crisis. The televised Senate Watergate hearings garnered nationwide attention and public interest. A special prosecutor for Watergate, Archibald Cox, was appointed in May 1973 and obtained a subpoena for the tapes, but Nixon continued to resist.

In October 1973, in what became known as the "Saturday Night Massacre", Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire Cox. Richardson resigned, as did his deputy William Ruckelshaus. Solicitor General Robert Bork carried out the order. This incident bolstered the public belief that Nixon had something to hide. In April 1974, Cox's replacement Leon Jaworski issued another subpoena for the tapes, but Nixon only released edited transcripts.

In July 1974, the Supreme Court ordered Nixon to release the tapes, and the House Judiciary Committee recommended that he be impeached for obstructing justice, abuse of power, and contempt of Congress. On one of the tapes, Nixon was recorded ordering aides to tell the FBI to halt its investigation—this became known as the "smoking gun" tape. On the verge of being impeached, Nixon resigned the presidency on August 9, 1974, becoming the only U.S. president to do so. In total, 48 people were found guilty of Watergate-related crimes, but Nixon was pardoned by his vice president and successor Gerald Ford.

The FBI's anti-corruption initiatives

The FBI's anti-corruption efforts also extend to addressing environmental crime, election fraud, and matters concerning federal government procurement, contracts, and federally funded programs. Additionally, the FBI plays a crucial role in combating corruption along the nation's borders and points of entry, helping to decrease the country's vulnerability to drug and weapons trafficking, alien smuggling, espionage, and terrorism.

One notable example of the FBI's anti-corruption initiatives is the Abscam sting operation in the 1970s, which uncovered corruption in Congress and led to the conviction of seven members of Congress for bribery. Another significant case was "Operation Greylord" in the mid-1980s, which resulted in the imprisonment of 92 crooked judges, lawyers, policemen, court officers, and others. The FBI has also been involved in investigating and prosecuting corruption in state and local governments, such as the Oklahoma county commissioners scandal in the 1980s, which resulted in the conviction of 230 people.

The FBI's anti-corruption work also extends beyond domestic corruption. The agency investigates international corruption, including cases involving bribery of foreign government officials and intercontinental drug smuggling rings. For example, in December 2024, McKinsey & Company Africa agreed to pay more than $120 million in connection with bribery of South African government officials.

Contemporary corruption in the US

In 2019, Stephen Walt argued that the United States was becoming increasingly corrupt, pointing to the Trump administration, the causes of the Great Recession, the failure of the Boeing 737 MAX, and the 2019 college admissions bribery scandal as examples. According to Transparency International's 2023 Corruption Perceptions Index, the US scored 69 out of 100 (where 0 is "highly corrupt" and 100 is "very clean"), ranking 24th out of 180 countries. This score is a slight improvement from 2021, when the US scored 67, its lowest score in almost a decade. However, it is still a decline from 2015, when the US scored 76.

In 2019, Transparency International stated that the US is "experiencing threats to its system of checks and balances" and an "erosion of ethical norms at the highest levels of power". They cited populism, nativism, and political polarisation as factors that may increase corruption.

The FBI is responsible for investigating corruption in the US and has several initiatives to investigate both domestic and foreign corruption. It recognises public corruption as its "top criminal investigative priority".

On 22 September, Senator Bob Menendez, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was formally charged with corruption alongside his wife, Nadine. This was the second time Menendez had faced such allegations. According to the indictment, the couple was engaged in a bribery scheme with three businessmen from New Jersey, receiving bribes in the form of gold, cash, a luxury vehicle, and other benefits totalling hundreds of thousands of dollars. In exchange, Menendez allegedly used his influential position to assist the businessmen and the government of Egypt.

A January 2018 report by the Public Citizen non-profit group described how dozens of foreign governments, special interest groups, and GOP congressional campaign committees spent hundreds of thousands of dollars at President Donald Trump's properties during his first year in office. The study concluded that these groups intended to win over the president by helping his commercial business empire profit while he held office.

In addition, grand juries often decline to seek charges for US police officers involved in violent activity, although some police officers have faced killing charges. Corruption cases and other non-violent crimes are more likely to be prosecuted.

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