Steve Chabot Quotes

He [Donald Trump] buys and sells politicians of all stripes.

The hardest way to make a million dollars is to become a United States senator. Any vicious, impudent, brazen, shrewd, gifted person can think of an infinite number of better ways to become rich than to become a crooked politician.

Our government is for sale.

Many Americans have sensed there is a very corrupt pay-to-play system going on in Washington.

The bottom line is that if politicians weren't in the business of granting favors and exacting tribute, every single issue surrounding campaign finance reform would be irrelevant. After all, why would anyone spend money for influence, access, favors and tribute if the only thing that politicians do is to live up to their oaths to uphold and defend the Constitution?

Politicians in this country have always been for sale. That is nothing new.

The quicker we get rid of the lobby system the better for all of us. I don't think in this day and age it is tenable to have these nods and winks, and on-the-record and off-the-record briefings.

People in Washington do things that they shouldn’t do because they owe somebody.

Farmers who are legislators are the easiest to buy and seduce.

Politicians can be bought and often are.

At one time in Montana, our elected officials were literally bought and owned by companies.

American democracy is spoiled by people buying everything in sight and then selling and buying everything in sight, including our politicians.

It never fails to astonish me how cheaply a politician can be bought.

Politics, as the word is commonly understood, are nothing but corruptions.

We do live in an environment of crony capitalism, and the main reason we do is that loopholes are for sale, and both parties have their hands out through those loopholes.

The biggest problem that we have is that California is being run now by special interests. All of the politicians are not anymore making the moves for the people, but for special interests and we have to stop that.

What we have now is a situation where politicians get a whole bunch of money from mainly business interests. Then once they hold that office, they spend all their time in office paying back over and over again those campaign contributions through various favors and contracts and that sort of thing.

Our form of democracy is bribery, on the highest scale.

As a lobbyist, I thought it only natural and right that my clients should reward those members who saved them such substantial sums with generous contributions. This quid pro quo became one of hallmarks of our lobbying efforts.

D.C. is more corrupt than Hollywood. It really is.

You can’t have a corrupt lobbyist if you don’t have a corrupt Congressman or staff member…. It’s a team effort.

America has the best congress money can buy.

A $5,000 campaign contribution to a member of Congress will hardly get you a thank you these days.

Special interests and Congress are too closely connected and the ties that bind are the millions spent on campaigns.

Money in politics leads to bad things—and I am bipartisan in that view.