RFI Board President discusses state of corruption following Trump’s pardon of former Gov. Blagojevich
David Melton, RFI’s Board President, responds to the actions taken by a “disruptive” Trump administration that has undone the FCPA and other long standing ethics norms.
Trump’s actions “send a message to corrupt politicians across the country. It says the Trump administration is open to the way business was done in the middle of the 19th century, when bribes were a way of life and there was corruption of all sorts.”
On Illinois, specifically, Melton thinks “it would be good for the Illinois AG office to focus more on corruption than it often has.” Prompted on past reforms, Melton said the following: “I think we have seen meaningful improvements reducing the level of corruption in general. However, in the short -term, I’m not optimistic.”
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