Influence Buying Quotes

If the big banks expect to buy influence when they give money to favored think tanks, then the public has a right to know. If the big banks don't expect to buy influence and are merely making charitable contributions, then their shareholders have a right to know. Either way, there's no excuse for keeping these payments secret.

For billionaires who cannot buy good press, there is the option of buying the press.

I needed the good will of the legislatures of four states. I formed the legislative bodies with my own money. I found it was cheaper that way.

For after all, what is there behind, except money? Money for the right kind of education, money for influential friends, money for leisure and peace of mind, money for trips to Italy. Money writes books, money sells them. Give me not righteousness, O lord, give me money, only money.

Bloomberg believes his money can buy anything - even the liberty of individual Americans. After all, his personal fortune bought him public office.

When billionaire car dealers or manufacturers pay for ambassadorships, at least they pay with money earned by selling something of value.

Big money tries to purchase its own agenda. Money does too much talking in Washington. Every senator, every representative, even the president awakens each morning with a number in his head that will drive the whole day. The number is the amount of money that must [be] raised that day for his reelection. If he fails, the next day's number will be even higher.

America has the best politicians money can buy.

Let’s not forget that expert opinion is for sale.

They are one of the most profitable industries in the world, and they’re throwing money into Washington DC. They’re buying politicians.

The trouble with Trump's father was that he was a totally naive man. He had no idea that you could buy the whole news reporting business in New York City with a return phone call.

Though authority be a stubborn bear, yet he is oft let by the nose with gold.

When the masters of industry pay such sums for a newspaper, they buy not merely the building and the presses and the name; they buy what they call the "good-will"- that is, they buy you. And they proceed to change your whole psychology - everything that you believe about life. You might object to it, if you knew; but they do their work so subtly that you never guess what is happening to you!

Men in power have no opinions, but may be had cheap for any opinion, for any purpose.

We need to focus, not only the buyers of influence, but also on the sellers of influence.

By the time a man gets to be presidential material, he's been bought ten times over.

The problem is not that you can buy a congressman for $10000 but that you can buy a Washington lawyer for $100000.

I think the notion that we have all the democracy that money can buy strays so far from what our democracy is supposed to be.

There are honest journalists like there are honest politicians - they stay bought.

Toshiba was able to purchase access to those who were writing the legislation. They won, but what they did was very offensive.

Even the financial disclosure statements that political bloggers were required to post hadn't stemmed the suspicion that people's opinions weren't really their own. "Who's paying you?" was a retort that might follow any bout of enthusiasm, along with laughter - who would let themselves be bought?

What is being bought by PACs is access ... Can my Uncle Fred walk into a senator's office? Of course not!

As a lobbyist, I was completely against term limits, and I know a lot of people are against term limits, and I was one of the leaders, because why? As a lobbyist, once you buy a congressional office, you don't have to re-buy that office in six years, right?

Foreign relations is an open book-- generally a checkbook.

Big money buys access in Washington, and access purchases influence. It is as simple as that. And they have basically given a green light, a further green light, after Citizens United, to the biggest money to have the bigger voice in our politics, and to sound out and drown out the voice of just ordinary citizens.