Dwight D. Eisenhower Quotes

I would argue that one of the issues which the public should be much more emphatic about with all politicians... is patronage, appointing people to high positions because they supported your campaign or helped you raise money.

Every single administration in American political history has put cronies and pals and donors into political positions. But normally those people become the ambassador to Liechtenstein or the deputy undersecretary of commerce.

Government runs by clout. That's how it runs, by clout.

In Washington, every closet has a revolving door.

Dictators can fix up their entire families in good jobs, in or around government, and often do. In democracies, such a practice is frowned upon. Privileged access to the corridors of power through family connections and a kind of old boys' network, is also deemed an abuse of power, and so it is.

Power is always a corrupting influence.

Government by blackmail is incompatible with democracy.

Politics makes strange postmasters.

Friendship is the most corrupting influence in politics.

As long as government exists, corruption will exist. It is an illness of government and can only be cured by the people.

All governments are more or less corrupt.

We live in a country where Wall Street owns Washington.

Let's face it, politics in this country is coin-operated. Does that really equate to a real democracy? It's very difficult to say.

A little learning is a dangerous thing, but a little patronage more so.

The problem with politics isn't the money; it's the power.

Corruption is just another form of tyranny.

It is a matter of common knowledge that the government of South Carolina is under domination of a small ring of cunning, conniving men.

Every economy exists, no matter what the level of democracy, has elements of crony capitalism. It's - given human nature and given the democratic structures, which we all, I assume, adhere to, that is an inevitable consequence.

I'm rather cynical about the way the honours system is used, frankly. A whole lot of the honours system is used for political purposes by the government in power.

A politician's goal is always to manipulate public debate. I think there are some politicians with higher goals. But all of them get corrupted by power.

The appalling reality in American politics today is that, when ideology and money mix, truth is a mere inconvenience.

Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely, and I found that out when I was Attorney General in Massachusetts.

It's very simple. If the American people care about a lot of things including corruption in government, then, in fact, if you use the power to appoint in order to do political business, to clear fields, to save your party money and so on, if it's not a crime - and I believe it is - it certainly is business as usual, politics of corruption.

It is true that power corrupts. The hope at the polling stations and the actions of the elected representatives, unfortunately, often turn to be opposite. The power of ballot turns into the power of wallet. Some law-makers become law-breakers.

I truly believe that all power corrupts. Such is probably the thinking behind every political film ever made in Hollywood.