Bribery: Tammany Hall Essay

policy-making machines of fraud and grafting Introduction Lincoln Steffens published the shame of the cities witch was a entertain based on the corruption in the 1900s. By 1900, many cities in the south of America were controlled by political machines. These organizations consisted of full-time politicians whose main ending was to get and keep politicians power and money and too influence that went into it. In the 1900s, machines were usually associated with a political party partys coerce to join to limit competition. And although it provided aids it also stifled opportunities for many citizens.Political bosses controlled access to city jobs for example police and fire departments or on contraction projects. To get a city work contract you had to donate to the machines reelection campaign. Many business paid politicians make government not to meddle with their activities. Such payoffs became part of the cost of doing business. Muckrakers called them BRIBERY National government also suffered from corruption. For example, the constitution gave fix legislatures the power to choose senators, but corporations often bribed state legislators to elect their favored candidates to the senate.The senates were really wealthy men with class ties to sizable industries. As cities and their problems grew rapidly the political environment changed. No coarseer did politicians trifle small manageable cities. These were big cities with big city problems and the government structures knowing to cope with these problems grew. As the government grew it became the livelihood for many professional politicians. some would argue that these politicians were corrupt, they would argue that they provided a needed service . he lodge of St. Tammany, which was also called the Columbian Order, was founded in May 1789 (some sources say 1786).The organization took its separate from Tamamend, a legendary Indian chief in the American northeasterly who was said to have had friendly de alings with William Penn in the 1680s. The original intend of the Tammany Society was for discussion of politics in the new nation. The club was unionized with titles and rituals based, quite loosely, on Native American lore. For instance, the leader of Tammany was known as the Grand Sachem, and the clubs headquarters was known as the wigwam. Befor long the Society of St. Tammany turned into a distinct political organization attached with Aaron burr, a powerful force in New York politics at the time.