--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Congressmen and Senators themselves…" description: "\"“The Congressmen and Senators themselves had seen to it that bribery was the only way of doing business with them. Frequently they would introduce bill..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/168/hugh-brogan-24641_business_the-congressmen-and-senators-themselves_1632190.jpg" --- # The Congressmen and Senators themselves had seen to it… ![“The Congressmen and Senators themselves had seen to it that bribery was the only way of doing business with them. Frequently they would introduce bills so bothersome to business that they would be offered handsome sums to withdraw them. The money would be accepted, since obtaining it was the only…” quote by Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/168/hugh-brogan-24641_business_the-congressmen-and-senators-themselves_1632190.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/168/hugh-brogan-24641_business_the-congressmen-and-senators-themselves_1632190.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/168/hugh-brogan-24641_business_the-congressmen-and-senators-themselves_1632190.jpg) > ““The Congressmen and Senators themselves had seen to it that bribery was the only way of doing business with them. Frequently they would introduce bills so bothersome to business that they would be offered handsome sums to withdraw them. The money would be accepted, since obtaining it was the only point of the enterprise, and the bill would be dropped. This technique was known as ‘the Strike’. Others would call it extortion.”” [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Political corruption often uses legislative tactics to extract money, turning lawmaking into a bribery scheme. **In simple terms:** Lawmakers use bills to demand bribes. Key Takeaway Recognize and resist corrupt legislative practices. Themes corruption politics legislation ethics power Mood cynical critical concerned Type political analytical explanatory When to use this quote - government oversight - journalistic investigation - public advocacy - legal reform Key Concepts bribery extortion policy manipulation institutional decay Questions to Reflect On - How can citizens expose hidden extortion in lawmaking? - What safeguards can prevent abuse of legislative power? A Different Perspective Such tactics can be hidden by complex legal language, making detection hard. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bribery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bribery/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Corruption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corruption/) [Extortion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extortion/) ## Related quotes > [I don't think it's bribery; I think it's extortion. Bribery, you know, is when the person that's giving the money does it voluntarily. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/i-don-t-think-it-s-bribery-i-think-it-s-extortion-bribery-you-know-is/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [“Ah, bribery." He grinned at his niece. "is there anything it can't do?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-damico/ah-bribery-he-grinned-at-his-niece-is-there-anything-it-can-t-do/) [Gina Damico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-damico/) > [If a politician takes a bribe to do what he thinks would have been best for the public anyway, he still goes to jail.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-t-conway-iii/if-a-politician-takes-a-bribe-to-do-what-he-thinks-would-have-been/) [George T. Conway III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-t-conway-iii/) > [A government with all this mass of favours to give or to withhold, however free in name, wields a power of bribery scarcely surpassed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-government-with-all-this-mass-of-favours-to-give-or-to-withhold/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You have fallen badly, señor gringo. Bribery is a very serious crime in this country. You will have to pay.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-have-fallen-badly-se-or-gringo-bribery-is-a-very-serious-crime-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Laws are a fine thing on paper, but painful when no bribery can ease their bind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/laws-are-a-fine-thing-on-paper-but-painful-when-no-bribery-can-ease/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [“Bribery quickly became an integral part of the Russian way of doing business, and the expense of buying a government official was considered the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-satter/bribery-quickly-became-an-integral-part-of-the-russian-way-of-doing/) David Satter > [Rather than let their product compete fully and fairly in the marketplace, FalconStor resorted to bribery and graft to win important contracts in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loretta-lynch/rather-than-let-their-product-compete-fully-and-fairly-in-the/) [Loretta Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loretta-lynch/) > [It was the BJP that betrayed me when one of its members made the Rs 150-crore bribery allegation against me without evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-kumaraswamy/it-was-the-bjp-that-betrayed-me-when-one-of-its-members-made-the-rs/) [H. D. Kumaraswamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-d-kumaraswamy/) > [They have seized upon the government by bribery and corruption. They have made speculation and public robbery a science. They have loaded the nation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-kearney/they-have-seized-upon-the-government-by-bribery-and-corruption-they/) [Denis Kearney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-kearney/) > [In the last few years, the very idea of telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth is dredged up only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-musto/in-the-last-few-years-the-very-idea-of-telling-the-truth-the-whole/) [Michael Musto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-musto/) > [Bribe is such an ugly word. I prefer extortion. The X makes it sound cool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bender-the-cartoon-character/bribe-is-such-an-ugly-word-i-prefer-extortion-the-x-makes-it-sound/) [Bender (The Cartoon Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bender-the-cartoon-character/) > [“From the first extortion he had accepted, from the first directive he had obeyed, he had given them cause to believe that reality was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/from-the-first-extortion-he-had-accepted-from-the-first-directive-he/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [As things get worse and the State seems powerless to help, the State will seem less and less legitimate. People will lose their moral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-donovan/as-things-get-worse-and-the-state-seems-powerless-to-help-the-state/) [Jack Donovan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-donovan/) > [ He \[Donald Trump\] is like - he's a magnet for crime and extortion and, you know, just really criminal investments which are extremely dangerous. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/he-donald-trump-is-like-he-s-a-magnet-for-crime-and-extortion-and-you/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) ## More by Hugh Brogan > [“The importance of capital in the early Industrial Revolution was so great and so obvious everywhere that it gave rise to several new social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/the-importance-of-capital-in-the-early-industrial-revolution-was-so/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“The business of America is business,’ said Calvin Coolidge”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/the-business-of-america-is-business-said-calvin-coolidge/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“Certainly, the new day was at hand when President Harding took office. The amazing disparity between the job and the man has the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/certainly-the-new-day-was-at-hand-when-president-harding-took-office/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“In an election speech in 1936, he said: I have seen blood running from the wounded. I have seen men coughing out their gassed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/in-an-election-speech-in-1936-he-said-i-have-seen-blood-running-from/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“Reverend John Allen of Massachusetts took up the cry: Blush ye pretended votaries for freedom! ye trifling patriots!… for while you are fasting, praying,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/reverend-john-allen-of-massachusetts-took-up-the-cry-blush-ye/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“The most successful politician is he who says what everybody is thinking most often and in the loudest voice. Theodore Roosevelt”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/the-most-successful-politician-is-he-who-says-what-everybody-is/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“The day was not far off when, as the saying goes, if Wall Street sneezed, the rest of the world would catch a cold.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/the-day-was-not-far-off-when-as-the-saying-goes-if-wall-street/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“A library of books like Madison Grant’s The Passing of the Great Race (1916) warned the Americans that they could not safely continue to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/a-library-of-books-like-madison-grant-s-the-passing-of-the-great-race/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“The new Republican party thought that it did, and in its 1856 platform denounced slavery and polygamy together as ‘twin relics of barbarism’. Or”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/the-new-republican-party-thought-that-it-did-and-in-its-1856-platform/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“a confirmation of two of history’s more dismal lessons: that grand alliances rarely survive the shock of victory, and that great powers usually behave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/a-confirmation-of-two-of-history-s-more-dismal-lessons-that-grand/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“Hating your neighbour is almost as secure a psychological prop as loving him, especially if he differs from you in looks, language or habits.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/hating-your-neighbour-is-almost-as-secure-a-psychological-prop-as/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“The Republicans, however, refused to let power slip from their hands so easily. The carpetbag governments in Louisiana and South Carolina announced that Rutherford…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/the-republicans-however-refused-to-let-power-slip-from-their-hands-so/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“In the South it was feared that immigrants did not have the correct racial attitudes: five Italians were lynched, in Tallulah, Louisiana, for associating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/in-the-south-it-was-feared-that-immigrants-did-not-have-the-correct/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“A common canard of the time showed Ike viewing the Presidency simply as an agreeable place in which to pass the early years of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/a-common-canard-of-the-time-showed-ike-viewing-the-presidency-simply/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) > [“The isolationists kept up a loud chorus of denunciation and formed the America First Committee to make sure that the ‘mistake’ of 1917 was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-brogan/the-isolationists-kept-up-a-loud-chorus-of-denunciation-and-formed/) [Hugh Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) [Explore all 24 Hugh Brogan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-brogan/) ## More Bribery quotes > [In the last few years, the very idea of telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth is dredged up only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-musto/in-the-last-few-years-the-very-idea-of-telling-the-truth-the-whole/) [Michael Musto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-musto/) > [“What did “good government” really mean? Langlie and his brotherhood promised an end to political corruption. (There’s no evidence that Langlie ever even took…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-sharlet/what-did-good-government-really-mean-langlie-and-his-brotherhood/) [Jeff Sharlet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-sharlet/) > [They have seized upon the government by bribery and corruption. They have made speculation and public robbery a science. They have loaded the nation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-kearney/they-have-seized-upon-the-government-by-bribery-and-corruption-they/) [Denis Kearney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-kearney/) > [It was the BJP that betrayed me when one of its members made the Rs 150-crore bribery allegation against me without evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-kumaraswamy/it-was-the-bjp-that-betrayed-me-when-one-of-its-members-made-the-rs/) [H. D. Kumaraswamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-d-kumaraswamy/) > [Rather than let their product compete fully and fairly in the marketplace, FalconStor resorted to bribery and graft to win important contracts in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loretta-lynch/rather-than-let-their-product-compete-fully-and-fairly-in-the/) [Loretta Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loretta-lynch/) > [“Bribery quickly became an integral part of the Russian way of doing business, and the expense of buying a government official was considered the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-satter/bribery-quickly-became-an-integral-part-of-the-russian-way-of-doing/) David Satter > [Tis gold Which buys admittance--oft it doth--yea, and makes Diana's rangers false themselves, yield up This deer to th' stand o' th' stealer: and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/tis-gold-which-buys-admittance-oft-it-doth-yea-and-makes-diana-s/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [We meant to temporarily disable her," Ian said. "Just a drop. But Natalie slipped during air turbulence. Before we could warn your nose-ringed nanny,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-lerangis/we-meant-to-temporarily-disable-her-ian-said-just-a-drop-but-natalie/) [Peter Lerangis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-lerangis/) > [Laws are a fine thing on paper, but painful when no bribery can ease their bind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/laws-are-a-fine-thing-on-paper-but-painful-when-no-bribery-can-ease/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [“You have fallen badly, señor gringo. Bribery is a very serious crime in this country. You will have to pay.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-have-fallen-badly-se-or-gringo-bribery-is-a-very-serious-crime-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A government with all this mass of favours to give or to withhold, however free in name, wields a power of bribery scarcely surpassed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-government-with-all-this-mass-of-favours-to-give-or-to-withhold/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To the goats, all people are equal, except for those who have treats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-tidbeck/to-the-goats-all-people-are-equal-except-for-those-who-have-treats/) [Karin Tidbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-tidbeck/) > [Petitions, not sweetened with gold, are but unsavory and oft refused; or, if received, are pocketed, not read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-massinger/petitions-not-sweetened-with-gold-are-but-unsavory-and-oft-refused-or/) [Philip Massinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-massinger/) > [If a politician takes a bribe to do what he thinks would have been best for the public anyway, he still goes to jail.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-t-conway-iii/if-a-politician-takes-a-bribe-to-do-what-he-thinks-would-have-been/) [George T. Conway III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-t-conway-iii/) > [“Ah, bribery." He grinned at his niece. "is there anything it can't do?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-damico/ah-bribery-he-grinned-at-his-niece-is-there-anything-it-can-t-do/) [Gina Damico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-damico/) [Browse all 94 Bribery quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bribery/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The Congressmen and Senators themselves had seen to it that bribery was the only way of doing business with them. Frequently they would introduce bills so bothersome to business that they would be offered handsome sums to withdraw them. The money would be accepted, since obtaining it was the only point of the enterprise, and the bill would be dropped. This technique was known as ‘the Strike’. 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