An Insider’s Perspective on Corruption in America

Author and journalist Sarah Chayes discusses how corruption weaves through politics and affects Americans on The Maggie Daun Show

There are some powerful insights shared through an insider’s perspective when Sarah Chayes joins Maggie Daun, host of The Maggie Daun Show. It includes a reminder for understanding corruption in America and how it impacts everyone. Chayes is a world-renowned journalist and author whose career spans from reporting for NPR in Paris to covering the fall of the Taliban in Afghanistan. She also advised the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and contributed to democracy programs at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Chayes is considered a leading expert on global corruption. And in her latest book, On Corruption in America: What’s at Stake, Chayes explores how corruption has become ingrained in the U.S. political and economic systems.

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LISTEN to the full interview here:

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“Corruption in America resembles the sophisticated networks I observed in countries like Afghanistan, where kleptocratic networks have infiltrated public and private sectors alike,” Chayes explains.  “The genius of a kleptocratic or corrupt network is it spans across sectors—private business, government, even criminal enterprises—and creates systems that make corruption the ‘operating system’ rather than the exception.”

The conversation quickly dives into why corruption is not just a problem happening in distant governments but is deeply affecting American lives today. Chayes points to the 2008 financial crisis as an example. 

“Unchecked financial corruption led to widespread job loss, home foreclosures, and financial ruin for millions of Americans,” Chayes says. “That crash was caused by systemic fraud on Wall Street and yet no major banking executives went to jail. The very laws that should have held them accountable were twisted to protect them.”

Chayes also addresses how corruption in the U.S. differs from countries with different revenue streams. She tells Daun the industries most vulnerable to corruption globally—finance, real estate, defense, and energy—are the same ones driving corruption in America.

“The networks of power have become so intertwined with our political institutions that they’ve even started changing laws to legalize their own actions,” Chayes warns. “I’m frustrated with the Democratic Party’s lack of a strong anti-corruption stance, despite their claims of moral integrity.”

Daun asks what’s at stake in the upcoming election. And while Chayes is quick to acknowledge the overt corruption in the Republican Party she also calls for more accountability from Democrats. 

“We can’t just keep pointing fingers across the aisle. Both sides must be held to higher standards if we’re going to tackle this problem,” Chayes says.

A reminder that corruption affects everyone, and combating it requires a united front from citizens across political divides.

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WATCH the entire episode of The Maggie Daun Show here:

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