It's true that it's not quite a bribe, since the politician can't spend the money on personal expenses. However, it is still a way of buying influence, since th

It's true that it's not quite a bribe, since the politician can't spend the money on personal expenses. However, it is still a way of buying influence, since the money goes to helping the politician getting reelected and therefore maintaining the position of power that makes their influence valuable. In practice it's only a little better than bribery.