Political History
|
Boss Tweed
The Plundering Politician Let’s stop them damn pictures. I don’t care so much what the papers write about—my constituents can’t read—but damn it, they can see pictures. During the latter half of the 19th Century, William Marcy “Boss” Tweed was the poster boy for political corruption, and he is still considered one of the most notorious politicians in US history. He rose to power during a period when New York City was experiencing a huge influx of immigrants and needed to build many public works projects to cope with the increased demand for services. During the 1860s and early 1870s, Tweed and his cronies ran New York City and stole many millions of dollars of public money; by some estimates, as much as $200 million. Tweed was the richest, the most powerful and the most corrupt politician of his day. |