--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Citizens United said that transparency…" description: "\"Citizens United said that transparency would be the disinfectant, but (c)(4)'s are warm, wet, moist incubators. There is no disinfectant.\" — Stephen Co..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db8/stephen-colbert-503_citizens_citizens-united-said-that-transparency-w_1903258.png" --- # Citizens United said that transparency would be the… ![“Citizens United said that transparency would be the disinfectant, but (c)(4)'s are warm, wet, moist incubators. There is no disinfectant.” quote by Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db8/stephen-colbert-503_citizens_citizens-united-said-that-transparency-w_1903258.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db8/stephen-colbert-503_citizens_citizens-united-said-that-transparency-w_1903258.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db8/stephen-colbert-503_citizens_citizens-united-said-that-transparency-w_1903258.png) > “Citizens United said that transparency would be the disinfectant, but (c)(4)'s are warm, wet, moist incubators. There is no disinfectant.” [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The claim that transparency will eliminate corruption is undermined by powerful political groups that act like incubators, preventing true cleansing. **In simple terms:** Transparency alone can't stop corruption when powerful groups hide behind legal structures. Key Takeaway Recognize limits of transparency and demand stronger oversight. Themes politics corruption transparency media law Mood skeptical critical Type analytical commentary When to use this quote - campaign finance reform - journalistic investigation - civic activism Key Concepts Regulatory capture political finance public trust Questions to Reflect On - How can citizens hold powerful groups accountable? - What mechanisms can truly disinfect politics? A Different Perspective Even with transparency, entrenched interests can evade scrutiny. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Citizens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/citizens/) [Citizens united](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/citizens-united/) [Disinfectant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disinfectant-1826469/) [Disinfectant Warm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disinfectant-warm-2820941/) [Incubators Disinfectant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/incubators-disinfectant-2820940/) [Moist Incubators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moist-incubators-2820942/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Transparency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transparency/) [Transparency Disinfectant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transparency-disinfectant-2820939/) [United](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/united/) [Warm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warm/) [Wet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wet/) [Would be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would-be/) ## Related quotes > [The entire future of marriage rests with Justice Anthony Kennedy, the man who declared in Citizens United that corporations are people with constitutional rights.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/the-entire-future-of-marriage-rests-with-justice-anthony-kennedy-the/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Sunlight is the best disinfectant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-douglas/sunlight-is-the-best-disinfectant/) [William O. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-douglas/) > [Light is the greatest disinfectant in nature and also in organizations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-covey/light-is-the-greatest-disinfectant-in-nature-and-also-in-organizations/) [Stephen Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-covey/) > [“In hermetic isolation, all kinds of bizarre and toxic ideas can fester. Sunlight is the best disinfectant, and exposing a bad idea to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/in-hermetic-isolation-all-kinds-of-bizarre-and-toxic-ideas-can-fester/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [Lemons clean everything. It's the greatest disinfectant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-bullock/lemons-clean-everything-it-s-the-greatest-disinfectant/) [Sandra Bullock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-bullock/) > [Humor itself is a great disinfectant. It enables people to listen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reich/humor-itself-is-a-great-disinfectant-it-enables-people-to-listen/) [Robert Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reich/) > [I'm kind of a germ freak. When I get on a plane, I spray my seat and everything with Lysol Disinfectant Spray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-rowland/i-m-kind-of-a-germ-freak-when-i-get-on-a-plane-i-spray-my-seat-and/) [Kelly Rowland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-rowland/) > [For all the cynicism about the media, it is a noble profession. Most enter it with a strong conviction that sunlight is the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-streeting/for-all-the-cynicism-about-the-media-it-is-a-noble-profession-most/) [Wes Streeting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-streeting/) > [There is no disinfectant like success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-j-boorstin/there-is-no-disinfectant-like-success/) [Daniel J. Boorstin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-j-boorstin/) > [Before I walk a mile in another person's shoes I spray them with disinfectant. . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-sutter/before-i-walk-a-mile-in-another-person-s-shoes-i-spray-them-with/) [Rick Sutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-sutter/) > [There's that old journalism rule that sunshine is the great disinfectant - which is how reporters bust their way into meetings and such all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-moehringer/there-s-that-old-journalism-rule-that-sunshine-is-the-great/) [J. R. Moehringer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-moehringer/) > [Sunshine is the best disinfectant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-d-brandeis/sunshine-is-the-best-disinfectant/) [Louis D. Brandeis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-d-brandeis/) > [Get hot water! Get some disinfectant! Get some iodine! -Lucy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-brown-christmas/get-hot-water-get-some-disinfectant-get-some-iodine-lucy/) [Charlie Brown Christmas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-brown-christmas/) > [“Transparency is the great disinfectant!!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ld/transparency-is-the-great-disinfectant/) [LD](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ld/) > [Sunshine is the greatest disinfectant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-d-brandeis/sunshine-is-the-greatest-disinfectant/) [Louis D. Brandeis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-d-brandeis/) ## More by Stephen Colbert > [Don't be bitter. Everybody suffers. If you can accept your suffering then you will understand other people better. Be grateful for pain. Love life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/don-t-be-bitter-everybody-suffers-if-you-can-accept-your-suffering/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Cynicism masquerades as wisdom, but it is the farthest thing from it. Because cynics don’t learn anything. Because cynicism is a self-imposed blindness, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/cynicism-masquerades-as-wisdom-but-it-is-the-farthest-thing-from-it/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [We all deserve credit for this new surveillance state that we live in because we the people voted for the Patriot Act. Democrats and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/we-all-deserve-credit-for-this-new-surveillance-state-that-we-live-in/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [I've long been against illegal aliens, partly because they distract us from an even bigger threat: real aliens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-ve-long-been-against-illegal-aliens-partly-because-they-distract-us/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Believe in me, cause I don't believe in anything, and I wanna be someone to believe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/believe-in-me-cause-i-don-t-believe-in-anything-and-i-wanna-be/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [It's August, which means Congress is on recess and Mitch McConnell has shimmied back into the ocean to seek a mate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/it-s-august-which-means-congress-is-on-recess-and-mitch-mcconnell-has/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Try to love others and serve others and hopefully find those who love and serve you in return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/try-to-love-others-and-serve-others-and-hopefully-find-those-who-love/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Thirty seconds is the exact amount of time Americans can tolerate something they don't understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/thirty-seconds-is-the-exact-amount-of-time-americans-can-tolerate/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [I used to make up stuff in my bio all the time, that I used to be a professional ice-skater and stuff like that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-used-to-make-up-stuff-in-my-bio-all-the-time-that-i-used-to-be-a/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [I live by syllogisms: God is love. Love is blind. Stevie Wonder is blind. Therefore, Stevie Wonder is God. I don't know what I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-live-by-syllogisms-god-is-love-love-is-blind-stevie-wonder-is-blind/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [“Unlike Paul Newman, who seems to think that salad dressing is the cure-all for America's ills, I'm a man of action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/unlike-paul-newman-who-seems-to-think-that-salad-dressing-is-the-cure/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Now, for my younger viewers out there, a book is something we used to have before the internet. It’s sort of a blog for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/now-for-my-younger-viewers-out-there-a-book-is-something-we-used-to/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Jesus forgives sinners, not criminals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/jesus-forgives-sinners-not-criminals/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Used books are the sluts of the literary world. Passed around from person to person, spreading their pages for anyone, getting cheaper and cheaper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/used-books-are-the-sluts-of-the-literary-world-passed-around-from/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [“Divorce is a marital welfare. It's just couples asking society to bail them out because they didn't do enough research before they got married.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/divorce-is-a-marital-welfare-it-s-just-couples-asking-society-to-bail/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) [Explore all 514 Stephen Colbert quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) ## More Citizens quotes > [Politics is not an issue whether you like or dislike , but every citizen must involve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khem-veasna/politics-is-not-an-issue-whether-you-like-or-dislike-but-every/) [Khem Veasna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khem-veasna/) > [I will be a model prisoner, as I have been a model citizen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-edwards/i-will-be-a-model-prisoner-as-i-have-been-a-model-citizen/) [Edwin Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-edwards/) > [The language we share is at the core of our identity as citizens, and our ticket to full participation in American political life. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-i-hayakawa/the-language-we-share-is-at-the-core-of-our-identity-as-citizens-and/) [S. I. Hayakawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-i-hayakawa/) > [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/) [Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/) > [“The police ultimately pay the price for poor customer service when citizens become fearful of them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-police-ultimately-pay-the-price-for-poor-customer-service-when/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [Worship isn't destructive, Martin. I know that. I don't. I only know it's the core of his life. What else has he got? He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-shaffer/worship-isn-t-destructive-martin-i-know-that-i-don-t-i-only-know-it-s/) [Peter Shaffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-shaffer/) > [No greater victory can be won by citizens or soldiers than to transform temporary foes into permanent friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-jennings-bryan/no-greater-victory-can-be-won-by-citizens-or-soldiers-than-to/) [William Jennings Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-jennings-bryan/) > [Let us at all times remember that all American citizens are brothers of a common country, and should dwell together in bonds of fraternal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/let-us-at-all-times-remember-that-all-american-citizens-are-brothers/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [A free society depends upon a high degree of mutual trust. The public will not give that trust to officials who are not seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-cox/a-free-society-depends-upon-a-high-degree-of-mutual-trust-the-public/) [Archibald Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-cox/) > [My dreams were always small and puny. All I ever needed was a little house with a little picket fence by the sea. Little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/imelda-marcos/my-dreams-were-always-small-and-puny-all-i-ever-needed-was-a-little/) [Imelda Marcos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/imelda-marcos/) > [The average ordinary citizen can do a lot of different things when it comes to the climate crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-bender/the-average-ordinary-citizen-can-do-a-lot-of-different-things-when-it/) [Lawrence Bender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-bender/) > [I think most of us are raised with preconceived notions of the choices we're supposed to make. We waste so much time making decisions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-bullock/i-think-most-of-us-are-raised-with-preconceived-notions-of-the/) [Sandra Bullock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-bullock/) > [Without the ability to talk about government power, there's no way for citizens to make sure this power isn't being misused.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-swartz/without-the-ability-to-talk-about-government-power-there-s-no-way-for/) [Aaron Swartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-swartz/) > [Consequently, citizen legislators, rotating back to their communities after a short period of public service—considered an indispensable and routine characteristic and design of representative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/consequently-citizen-legislators-rotating-back-to-their-communities/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What I will stand up for is what I think is right and for the best interests of the citizens of the state of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patty-judge/what-i-will-stand-up-for-is-what-i-think-is-right-and-for-the-best/) [Patty Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patty-judge/) [Browse all 4,189 Citizens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/citizens/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Citizens United said that transparency would be the disinfectant, but (c)(4)'s are warm, wet, moist incubators. There is no disinfectant.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen Colbert" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/citizens-united-said-that-transparency-would-be-the-disinfectant-but/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Citizens" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/citizens-united-said-that-transparency-would-be-the-disinfectant-but/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db8/stephen-colbert-503_citizens_citizens-united-said-that-transparency-w_1903258.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db8/stephen-colbert-503_citizens_citizens-united-said-that-transparency-w_1903258.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db8/stephen-colbert-503_citizens_citizens-united-said-that-transparency-w_1903258.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Citizens United said that transparency would be the disinfectant, but (c)(4)'s are warm, wet, moist…” — Stephen Colbert", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Stephen Colbert", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Citizens United said that transparency would...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/citizens-united-said-that-transparency-would-be-the-disinfectant-but/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/citizens-united-said-that-transparency-would-be-the-disinfectant-but/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```