As one of approximately 12,000 Americans who have served in the U.S. Congress, it is painful to watch the sordid behavior of Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., and Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., as they erode faith in Congress and elected officials in general.
This year Menendez and Santos have been formally indicted by federal prosecutors: Menendez on three counts and Santos on 13 counts of federal law violations.
Sadly, these serious charges suggest bipartisan corruption at the highest level of government. And these come on top of Donald Trump’s cascading legal problems in multiple venues too numerous to list. Trump’s charges as a former president are unprecedented, while the stench of congressional corruption never totally evaporates.
Two of my colleagues from the congressional class of ’91, former Reps. Duke Cunningham, R-Calif., and Bill Jefferson, R-La., succumbed to the temptations of money and power. Members of Congress have power. It goes with the job. It’s the lure of money in the use of power that tempts members to violate their oath and destroy constituents’ trust.
Cunningham, a distinguished Vietnam War veteran and Navy pilot, served seven years in prison for taking $2.4 million in bribes for contracts he directed to defense contractors from his perch on the Defense Appropriations Committee.
Jefferson, a brilliant lawyer, was sentenced to 13 years in prison on bribery, racketeering, conspiracy, money laundering and obstruction of justice.
They were outliers, however. Other colleagues in the 102nd Congress went on to become ambassadors, presidential candidates, speaker of the House, senators, senior administration officials and trusted advisers. Nevertheless, their unlawful behavior took its toll.
Why do some always know true north while others veer off course to immorality and unethical behavior?
In 1887, British historian Lord Acton famously said, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Acton’s references applied to political and religious leaders. The takeaway is that as the power of leaders increases, their moral sense diminishes.
Acton was ostensibly the founding voice of U.S. presidential term limits and the 22nd Amendment to our Constitution, which imposes an eight-year cap of service. Americans intuitively sense that elected officials can grow distant from those who put them in power. Authoritarian figures often seek to discard constitutional limits of power or establish institutional safeguards to their longevity.
We now see all too vividly the difference between the lifetime appointments of federal district judges and Supreme Court justices. Supreme Court justices don’t have stringent reporting requirements. Federal district judges do. In the Supreme Court, disclosure is voluntary.
Justice Clarence Thomas has flunked that test, further eroding public trust in him and the judiciary.
The United States should be the beacon of transparency and open government, but we are not alone in seeking a more perfect union. On the world stage, leaders who have morphed into authoritarianism while in office include Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe, Viktor Orban in Hungary, Tayyip Erdogan in Turkey and Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel.
Not to be outdone, Trump has new plans, if elected, to consolidate his personal power in the executive branch. He would quadruple political appointees and demand loyalty to him rather than the Constitution and oath of office. We can readily recall Trump’s disgraceful efforts to turn the Department of Justice into his personal law firm. There’s more authoritarian mischief on Trump’s drawing board, according to the New York Times: bit.ly/46fJvpo.
Absolute power corrupts absolutely.
As a former member of Congress, I have spoken to thousands of students about public service and life in Congress. I always mention the constant temptations to abuse power in the pursuit of money — or greater power. Almost daily, there are clear or opaque tests of one’s morality and ethical underpinnings. This moral hazard exists with congressional staff as well.
Unfortunately, there are always a few who succumb to the temptations. Those few, like Menendez and Santos, poison public sentiment about the members of Congress who diligently toil and steer away from even the appearance of corruption.
We all recognize the out-sized influence of money in today’s politics. This is not new. Commercial giants such as the American Fur Company as far back as the early 1800s positioned themselves in Washington, D.C., to lobby Congress for policy changes and favorable treatment. Lobbying grew exponentially as our country expanded and so did the amounts of money spent to influence legislators.
No matter what safeguards are established to protect the public’s interest, voters must somehow discern the moral integrity of candidates and elected officials for any hint of past or future impropriety.
Menendez and Santos may be just two out of 535 members of Congress, but their corruption corrodes the entire body and weakens our country’s moral fiber.
Shame on them.
LaRocco, of Boise, represented Idaho’s 1st Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1991-95.