Graft refers to the unethical practices that lead to the progression of those who are willing to defraud, cheat and swindle to get by. The definition gives insight into why the word is synonymous with Boss Tweed. The level of corruption with Boss Tweed and Tammany Hall is unparalleled. Political machines were associations that offered jobs and social services in exchange for votes. These machines were usually headed up by a boss, like Tweed for example. They made sure that poor people had what they needed because that would make the poor loyal to them consequently making sure the poor voted for them. These machines would grant government contracts and jobs to people that did favors for them. The machine consisted of a boss who would control the party and the …show more content…
It needs enough greedy and corrupt people all scratching each other’s backs. Boss Tweed was a smart man. He took excellent care of his predominantly immigrant constituency. He provided jobs for the unemployed, coal in the winter, orphanages, hospitals and shelter for the poor and if the provider of a household suddenly passed away, the machine would step in financially to help the family through such a tragic and difficult time. It could stand to reason that Boss Tweed’s machine was a great thing for the poor immigrants in the city. They bought the votes of these immigrants with city jobs, with unofficial aid payments, and with many other types of financial help. By doing these things, they provided an immense deal of support to the immigrants. The machine was also good for the upper class; even if they saw the corruption and were upset by it, property values were going through the roof and they were raking in the money…why would they stop that by saying something. However, it was just plain bad for everyone else. Someone had to pay for the votes and for the shady practices of the political
Individuals like Boss Tweed seized and controlled entire cities. William M. Tweed was a politician who controlled New York City's political network through illegal subsidization for political support and affiliation with city gangs. From his headquarters at Tammany Hall and his position in the United States House of Representatives, he was able to orchestrate elections, cultivate support, and establish the New York County Courthouse, funded by the profits of the Tweed Ring (“William Magear Tweed”) . His accomplishments were made possible by the chaotic shambling of desperate people who had no choice but to submit to his demands, in hopes of alleviating themselves from their dire circumstances. Tweed was only one of many corrupt political figures who used their power and influence to accumulate wealth, and vice versa. By the mid 20th century, the scale and prominence of corruption had increased dramatically, due to the widespread transition to vast urban cities and industrialized systems. The greed and desperation that resulted from the shift towards industrialism accelerated the growth of corruption in
As industrialization caused cites to grow in leaps and bounds, political bosses started to take power. As the 19th Century came to a close, almost every sizable city had a political boss, or at least had one rising to power. Tons of immigrants from every part of the world began to pour into the major cities. Cities have had diversity in the past, but the huge diversity of the American cities was unique.
With this power came leniency for the men and Tweed began to use this power to gain personal wealth. Tweed accomplished this when he made business for the city. For example, “Tweed allowed the contractors to overcharge the city for their work as long as the suppliers ‘kicked back’ a portion of their illicit profits to him” (Anbinder, 2010), as well as Hall, Sweeny, and Connolly. Tweed and these men were nicknamed the Tweed ring, known for their illicit acts against the city (Hirsch, 1945, p.
Timothy Gilfoyle main argument from the excerpt of the book “A pickpocket’s tale” was about the political corruption, and the political influence that many gangsters of the late 19th century, and early 20th century had, as well as the overall role that gangs played in society. During the late 1800’s, and early 1900’s many gangsters had political connection, and because of this were able to get away with breaking the law without having to face any consequences (Gilfoyle, T., Chapter 9 pg.12, 13 &14). One example was Gould, who despite running an illegal bar (dive), threating a women to blow her brains out, assaulting a bartender and leaving him all bloody, never faced any charges against him, because of his political connections in New York in the late 1800’s (Gilfoyle, T., Chapter 9 pg.12). Gangster’s, and politicians had a strong connection in the late 19th
The nature of the political machine can be described as a "well oiled machine." They are constantly in the community making it known that they are the ones to trust. Within chapter five, Plunkitt states "When the people elected Tammany, they knew just what they were doin', we didn't put up any false pretenses." This goes to show that there were political parties that claimed to make a difference and never carried out their promises. The support was given, but the people were neglected. By constantly doing for the community it showed the people that Tammany was here to stay. Even after receiving the votes of their supporters, they are still helping in the community. The sense of patronage and trust is not taken for granted. It is constantly being used back and forth, which enables Tammany Hall to receive straight ticket
He had opposition from reformers who accused Tammany Hall of illegal activities involving graft. But, according to Plunkitt, he never engaged in "blackmailin', gamblin' or disorderly people." He said that "the politician that steals is worse than a thief." He is a fool, he is a fool." Plunkitt made a fortune in politics, and he did it all through honest graft.
The theme of The Catcher in the Rye is simple. J. D. Salinger uses this novel to draw a clear distinction between the purity of childhood and the wickedness attained when one reaches adulthood. Salinger uses multiple literary devices including diction, symbolism, tone, and even the title of the novel to drive home his ideas about the innocence of children and the corruption of the world.
enough votes to maintain control over the community. Political machines were able to restructure the city governments; they also resulted in poorer services, corruption and aggravation of the immigrants and minorities. ("Encyclopedia of American History") He was able to infiltrate Tammany Hall and bribe or smooth-talk any government official that stood in his way. Famously, Tweed is known for the construction of the New York Courthouse. It wasn't until the New York Times wrote an exposé on Boss Tweed that his grafting became publicly known and finally consequences caught up with his actions.
Former House speaker Tip O'Neil once said that all politics is local, and while that isn't actually true, local politics is a grate example of common corruption. Specifically, one of America's greatest inventions, the political machine. A political machine is most easily explained as an organization that works to win elections so that the machine can exercise political and civil power. The most notorious political machine was New York City's Tammany Hall, which dominated Party politics in the late 19th century, survived until the 20th, and is most associated with wide spread corruption.
Fear begets hate and hate begets violence. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the 1741 New York slave conspiracy trials. Much like the violence in the Salem Witch Trials, a set of natural circumstances coupled with the word of one or two people from a lower order of society caused hysteria and bloodshed. This case is flimsy by modern-day standards and is also very flimsy by the standards of the 1740s.
Jimmy Walker finally leaving left city hall for the last time on September 1, 1932, was a distinct victory for New York and had triggered one of the most far-reaching political transformations in history. Fiorello Laguardia took the Noval office in 1933, and finally New York had a mayor that was fit in order to get through the depression Jimmy had left and to get through the world war. At the time Laguardia became mayor, unemployment was at an all time high, he became mayor during the most difficult time to be mayor. However, Fiorello was determined to get New York City in shape and got right to work. In only weeks he demolished the political corruption that had been running New York for generation and began to employ honest professionals.
Following the years of Congressional Reconstruction during the Johnson administration, former Union General Ulysses S. Grant was elected president, despite his lack of political experience. Although Grant was an excellent soldier, he proved to be an insufficient politician, failing to respond effectively to rampant corruption throughout his two terms in office. Both government and businesses were plagued by corrupt schemes, as Republican leaders used the spoils system to gain political favors and “robber barons,” such as Jay Gould and James Fisk, stole large sums of money at the public’s expense. New York Mayor William “Boss” Tweed, leader of the “Tammany Hall” political machine, took advantage of the influx of immigrants to the United States by manipulating newly arrived immigrants, promising employment, housing, and other favors in return for their electoral support. This blatant corruption severely damaged the opinions of many Americans regarding their government, and prompted the election of numerous reform-minded politicians. Rutherford B. Hayes and James Garfield both attempted to restore honest government following the tainted Grant administration, yet political divisions between the “Halfbreed” and “Stalwart” factions of the Republican Party prev...
Plunkitt defines the difference between honest graft and dishonest graft based on the legality of honest graft and him being a “savvy businessman.” Dishonest graft as defined by Plunkitt is essentially the blackmail of gamblers, saloon keepers, disorderly people, and others. The difference between Plunkitts definition of honest graft and dishonest graft is that Plunkitt uses unethical yet legal methods of making money whilst dishonest graft is the use of blatantly illegal actions to make money. Plunkitt states the difference between honest and dishonest graft is that honest graft is legal as well as a great way for a businessman like himself to profit. Dishonest graft as stated by Plunkitt is clearly illegal unlike honest graft and therefore
George W. Plunkitt of Tammany Hall may have been one of the most arrogant & intelligent men of his time, he saw his opportunities when they arose and he took them as soon as he possibly could. Not only did he make a huge fortune but he made it using, what he called, "honest graft". With this sentence in the first chapter,"Everybody is talkin' these days about Tammany men growin' rich on graft, but nobody thinks of drawin' the distinction between honest graft and dishonest graft." Plunkitt sets the tone for his short treatise on New York City politics while Tammany Hall ran the show. George W. Plunkitt was a senator in New York at the turn of the 19th Century to the 20th Century. He was very successful in politics, and at one time he held four offices at once and collected salaries from three of them. G. W. Plunkitt securely held one and possibly other offices in Tammany Hall for over forty years. He was somewhat of a shady politician who took care of his constituents and his bank account. Plunkitt was never shy about becoming rich in politics because he did nothing illegal by the standards of the time. Moreover, Plunkitt never broke the penal code and therefore never spent a day in jail.
The corruption in politics was very evident in places like New York and Philadelphia. New York had Tammany Hall and Philadelphia had a very corrupt voting system. In his collected articles in the form a book entitled The Shame of the Cities, California-born journalist Lincoln Steffens writes, “The machine controls the whole process of voting, and practices fraud at every stage.” He is writing about Philadelphia and the corruption in the voting process. Steffens goes on to describe how the voting system is corrupt, like, “The assessor pads the list with the names of dead dogs, children, and non-existent persons.” He later mentions one Rudolph Blankenburg, who sent out letters to everyone on the list before hand and 63% of them were returned as ‘not at,’ ‘removed’, ‘deceased’, etc. The muckrakers also helped expose the corruption in big businesses. Upton Sinclaire, a famous socialist muckraker who wrote the book The Jungle, wrote about how unsanitary the meat packing process was and mentioned how when the superintendents were questioned about the conditions, they merely stated and I quote from The Jungle, “…the meat would after wards be cooked and that this sterilization would prevent any danger from its use.” Sinclair goes on to say that statement was not wholly true as some of the meat would be used as smoked products, such as sausage, and