Corruption in the United States is the act of government officials
abusing their political powers for private gain, typically through
bribery
Bribery is the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official, or other person, in charge of a public or legal duty. With regard to governmental operations, essentially, bribery is "Cor ...
or other methods, in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
government. Corruption in the United States has been a perennial political issue, peaking in the
Jacksonian era and the
Gilded Age
In United States history, the Gilded Age was an era extending roughly from 1877 to 1900, which was sandwiched between the Reconstruction era and the Progressive Era. It was a time of rapid economic growth, especially in the Northern and Wes ...
before declining with the reforms of the
Progressive Era.
As of 2022 the United States is the 27th least corrupt country according to the
Corruption Perceptions Index.
History
18th century
Corruption in the United States dates back to the founding of the country. The
American Revolution
The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...
was, in part, a response to the perceived corruption of the
British monarchy.
Separation of powers
Separation of powers refers to the division of a state's government into branches, each with separate, independent powers and responsibilities, so that the powers of one branch are not in conflict with those of the other branches. The typi ...
was developed to enable accountability.
Freedom of association
Freedom of association encompasses both an individual's right to join or leave groups voluntarily, the right of the group to take collective action to pursue the interests of its members, and the right of an association to accept or decline mem ...
also served this end, allowing citizens to organize independently of the government. This was in contrast to some European powers at the time where all associations and economic activities were implicitly managed by the government.
During the
1st United States Congress
The 1st United States Congress, comprising the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, met from March 4, 1789, to March 4, 1791, during the first two years of George Washington's presidency, first at Federal Hall i ...
,
Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton proposed several new economic initiatives that involved taxes, tariffs, debts, and a
national bank. Fears that these proposals would lead to corruption grew so great that the
Democratic-Republican Party
The Democratic-Republican Party, known at the time as the Republican Party and also referred to as the Jeffersonian Republican Party among other names, was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the earl ...
was formed to oppose them.
19th century
Corruption reemerged as a major theme in American politics in the
1824 United States presidential election, where
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...
ran as an
anti-corruption
Anti-corruption (or anticorruption) comprises activities that oppose or inhibit corruption. Just as corruption takes many forms, anti-corruption efforts vary in scope and in strategy. A general distinction between preventive and reactive meas ...
candidate. The issue was only exasperated by the controversial results of the election preventing Jackson's victory, known as the
corrupt bargain. Following Jackson's victory in
the next election, a
dispute over the national bank again became relevant in the issue of corruption.
In state governments, authorities would authorize
corporate charters to authorize the creation of new corporations. These faced some resistance due to their potential for corruption. While they were generally used in ways that promoted the economic development of the states, there were instances of charters being given preferential treatment to political allies. The
Albany Regency, for example, authorized charters for banks in exchange for political and financial support. This issue was eventually solved as state governments standardized the process of incorporation throughout the 1840s.
The
Gilded Age
In United States history, the Gilded Age was an era extending roughly from 1877 to 1900, which was sandwiched between the Reconstruction era and the Progressive Era. It was a time of rapid economic growth, especially in the Northern and Wes ...
was a period of increased prosperity and growth in the United States. This growth resulted in a corresponding increase of corruption and bribery in the government and in business. The main issue of contention was the
spoils system, in which government jobs were given in exchange for political support. This issue was addressed by
civil service reform.
The
Presidency of Ulysses S. Grant during the Gilded Age was mired with
instances of corruption. Grant had been elected without political experience, and he had little ability to control or regulate the members of his government, who proceeded to take advantage of his inexperience.
Notable examples include the
Whiskey Ring, the
Star Route scandal, and the
trader post scandal. The
Crédit Mobilier scandal
The Crédit Mobilier scandal () was a two-part fraud conducted from 1864 to 1867 by the Union Pacific Railroad and the Crédit Mobilier of America construction company in the building of the eastern portion of the First transcontinental railroad ...
also became public information at this time.
20th century
The
Progressive Era was a period of anti-corruption fervor in the United States led by the
progressive movement. During this time,
political machines and
monopolies were targeted and disestablished.
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...
was a major figure in the Progressive Era, leading the efforts of
trustbusting.
The
Teapot Dome scandal was a major instance of corruption during the
Presidency of Warren G. Harding.
Secretary of the Interior Secretary of the Interior may refer to:
* Secretary of the Interior (Mexico)
* Interior Secretary of Pakistan
* Secretary of the Interior and Local Government (Philippines)
* United States Secretary of the Interior
See also
*Interior ministry
An ...
Albert B. Fall had accepted bribes from oil companies in exchange for access to government petroleum reserves. After the corruption was discovered, Fall was sentenced to prison.
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
was notably the subject of multiple corruption allegations. While running for
Vice President
A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...
in 1952, Nixon famously gave a
speech declaring that he accepted one gift, a dog named Checkers, and that he had no intention of returning it. During Nixon's presidency, he was implicated in the
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation. The scandal stemmed from the Nixon administration's contin ...
. Shortly before, his Vice President
Spiro Agnew had been found guilty of tax fraud.
In the 1970s, the FBI conducted the
sting operation
In law enforcement, a sting operation is a deceptive operation designed to catch a person attempting to commit a crime. A typical sting will have an undercover law enforcement officer, detective, or co-operative member of the public play a role ...
codenamed
Abscam to uncover corruption in Congress. Seven members of Congress were convicted of bribery.
Contemporary corruption
The United States' perceived resistance to corruption has declined in recent years, dropping its rank as 18th in 2016 to 27th out of 180 on the
Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index of 2021. In 2019, Transparency International stated that the United States is "experiencing threats to
its system of checks and balances", along with an "erosion of ethical norms at the highest levels of power", citing
populism
Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term develop ...
,
nativism, and
political polarization as factors that may increase corruption. Some state governments are also currently known to have corruption issues compared to other states with Louisiana, Illinois and Tennessee were labeled "The worst of the worst" in 2018.
The FBI is responsible for investigating corruption in the United States with several initiatives to investigate both domestic and foreign corruption, and it recognizes public corruption as its "top criminal investigative priority".
In 2019,
Stephen Walt
Stephen Martin Walt (born July 2, 1955) is the Robert and Renee Belfer Professor of International relations at the Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University and a political scientist.
A member of the realist school of international relatio ...
argued that the United States was becoming increasingly corrupt, pointing to the
Trump administration
Donald Trump's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 45th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Donald Trump, his inauguration on January 20, 2017, and ended on January 20, 2021. Trump, a Republican Party ...
, the
causes of the Great Recession, the failure of the
Boeing 737 MAX
The Boeing 737 MAX is the fourth generation of the Boeing 737, a narrow-body airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA), a division of American company Boeing. It succeeds the Boeing 737 Next Generation (NG) and competes with ...
, and the
2019 college admissions bribery scandal as examples. Walt argues that these examples show that corruption is a growing problem in the United States and in the longer term threaten the country's
soft power
In politics (and particularly in international politics), soft power is the ability to co-opt rather than coerce (contrast hard power). In other words, soft power involves shaping the preferences of others through appeal and attraction. A defi ...
. The United States has been cited as a
tax haven. The
Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act make it so that foreign governments had to reveal American accounts abroad, though they made it so the US was also under no compunction, legal or otherwise, to share information on non-Americans opening up accounts in the US. In 2020 U.S. ranked second in the
Financial Secrecy Index
The Financial Secrecy Index (FSI) is a report published by the advocacy organization Tax Justice Network (TJN) which ranks countries by ''financial secrecy indicators'', weighted by the economic flows of each country.
It looks at how wealthy ...
behind only the
Cayman Islands
The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territory—the largest by population in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located to the ...
. In 2016 one estimate placed the total offshore wealth in the US at $800 billion.
See also
*
List of United States federal officials convicted of corruption offenses
*
List of United States state officials convicted of federal corruption offenses
*
List of United States local officials convicted of federal corruption offenses
*
United States as a tax haven
In 2010, the United States implemented the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act; the law required financial firms around the world to report accounts held by US citizens to the Internal Revenue Service.
The US on the other hand refused the Com ...
References
Further reading
*
*
*
External links
United Statesat the
Business Anti-Corruption Portal
The Risk & Compliance Portal (formerly The Business Anti-Corruption Portal) is a powerhouse for business anti-corruption information offering tools on how to alleviate or reduce risks and costs of corruption when doing business abroad. All the inf ...
United Statesat
Transparency InternationalUnited Statesat the
Global Corruption Barometer
{{United States topics
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...