How Does Big Money Influence the Political and Governmental Processes - Campaign Finance (2006)

An unholy alliance is a coalition among seemingly antagonistic groups for ad hoc or hidden gain, generally some influential non-governmental group forming ties with political parties, supplying funding in exchange for the favorable treatment. Like patronage, unholy alliances are not necessarily illegal, but unlike patronage, by its deceptive nature and often great financial resources, an unholy alliance can be much more dangerous to the public interest. An early use of the term was by former US President Theodore Roosevelt (TR):
"To destroy this invisible Government, to dissolve the unholy alliance between corrupt business and corrupt politics is the first task of the statesmanship of the day." -- 1912 Progressive Party Platform, attributed to TR and quoted again in his autobiography where he connects trusts and monopolies (sugar interests, Standard Oil, etc.) to Woodrow Wilson, Howard Taft, and consequently both major political parties.



In most countries corporations and prominent people are free to publicly support and offer contributions to a party. Even pressuring politicians to adopt a specific policy in exchange for public support is not considered corruption, as this kind of behavior is generally considered lobbying as long as money and resources are reported to the proper authorities, generally meaning they are made available to the public. This kind of behavior is generally only considered to be corruption when there is financial support given outside of scrutiny, with the implication that such funds are provided as a quid pro quo for preferential treatment.
In the modern age this kind of arrangement is seldom overt and the existence of such things is a matter of some contention. Through ideas such as Military-Industrial Complex it is believed that private companies and military groups may be able exert pressure on elected officials to adopt interventionist policies and thus to invest in a large military and provide opportunities for companies to create armaments and take on large re-building contracts. Another theory proposed by Noam Chomsky is that governments and corporations ally to wield power over the press and through them on the people. It is believed that by controlling how the electorate perceive the world governments are able to justify almost any public actions or to cover up their own failings.
However no institutional corruption of this kind has ever been proven to exist, although individual cases have come to light through lesser forms of corruption. In any political system such activities may in fact be legal if structured correctly (large numbers of individual donations instead of a single large one for example) and are the result of political culture rather than any concerted attempt to corrupt the process. It is certainly true that all large entities have an interest in lobbying for their own interests but exactly where this would become corruption is not well defined.

An illustrative example of official involvement in organized crime can be found from 1920s and 1930s Shanghai, where Huang Jinrong was a police chief in the French concession, while simultaneously being a gang boss and co-operating with Du Yuesheng, the local gang ringleader. The relationship kept the flow of profits from the gang's gambling dens, prostitution, and protection rackets undisturbed.
The United States accused Manuel Noriega's government in Panama of being a "narcokleptocracy", a corrupt government profiting on illegal drug trade. Later the U.S. invaded Panama and captured Noriega.

In fiction

The Financier (1912), The Titan (1914), and The Stoic (1947), Theodore Dreiser's Trilogy of Desire, based on the life of the transit mogul Charles Tyson Yerkes
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (Hollywood film 1939)
Atlas Shrugged (1957 novel)
The Government Inspector (1836 novel)
Henry Adams' novel Democracy (1880)
HBO's television series about Baltimore, The Wire
Carl Hiaasen's novel Sick Puppy (1999)
Much of the Batman comic book series
V for Vendetta comic book series
The Ghost in the Shell Anime films and series
Animal Farm a novel by George Orwell
Training Day (2001 film)
Exit Wounds (2001 film)
American Gangster (2007 film)
Robert Penn Warren's novel All the King's Men (1946)
Guru (2007 film) (Indian film)
Katherine Boo's non-fiction book Behind the Beautiful Forevers (2012)
Vandal Hearts A tactical based role playing game created by Konami is based around political corruption.

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