SUPREME COURT ENDORSES PAYOFFS

Durt Fibo

June 26, 2024

Today, the Supreme Court annihilated basic fundamentals of a federal anti-corruption law that made it a crime for state and local officials to take gifts valued at more than $5,000 from a donor who had previously been awarded lucrative contracts or other government benefits thanks to the efforts of that official.

The case in question was SNYDER v. UNITED STATES (CERTIORARI TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SEVENTH CIRCUIT), in which, by a 6-3 vote, the court overturned the conviction of a former Indiana mayor who ‘requested’ and received a $13,000 payment from the owners of a local truck dealership after he helped them win $1.1 million in city contracts for the purchase of garbage trucks.

While admitting that “bribes” are illegal, writing in the majority decision, Ayatollah Brett Kavanaugh proclaimed that “The question in this case is whether [the federal law] also makes it a crime for state and local officials to accept gratuities — for example, gift cards, lunches, plaques, books, framed photos or the like — that may be given as a token of appreciation after the official act. The answer is no.”

The three who dissented from the ruling were Sotomayor, Jackson and Kagan. In her written opinion -which is as long as the majority ruling- Jackson detailed how the decision itself was a form of corruption, summarizing: “The language of other statutes demonstrates that Congress uses the word “reward” when it wants to criminalize gratuities.”

This official grand opening of this era of corruption was, conveniently enough, voted in by Kavanaugh, Alito, Thomas, Gorsuch, Roberts, and Coney Island Barrett. You may now send your cash or credit card details to them at:  Supreme Court of the United States, 1 First Street, NE Washington, DC 20543.