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Have you never watched a drug smuggler movie? Half the headaches are trying to launder the money. Speeches are the best way to bribe someone. Once they give th

by jb775 6y ago

Have you never watched a drug smuggler movie? Half the headaches are trying to launder the money. Speeches are the best way to bribe someone. Once they give the speech, it's "services rendered". There's no shady money transfers to explain, since it's all out in the open. There's no risk of fraud. There's no way to be caught in a lie, because the entire payment is pegged to physically speaking in front of a group, which they actually did do. The only questionable thing is the amount paid, which is subjective.

hooande 6y ago
Discretion is part of a bribe's value proposition. The existence of this post is why public speaking fees are a horrible vehicle for corruption. You have people complaining and asking for recusal. It's negative publicity and a hindrance to corrupt acts. At Yellen's level, access to information is what has the most value. That's how I would bribe someone like that. No paper trail
- _qulr 6y ago
  > You have people complaining and asking for recusal. It's negative publicity and a hindrance to corrupt acts. A lot better than prison though.
- treis 6y ago
  >You have people complaining and asking for recusal. It's negative publicity and a hindrance to corrupt acts. It's hard to look at the past decade or two and think there was a hinderance to corrupt acts. Sure, people complain but rich people got their tax breaks, Wall St. gets friendly policy, and mega corps get bailed out. The system is clearly working for those involved.