Political Quotes

“as I rise today, kleptocracy is on the march in Europe, showing how unchecked corruption leads to evil. Vladimir Putin's corrupt regime fabricated a pretext to invade and subjugate the sovereign and peaceful nation of Ukraine. Putin's attack helps divert the Russian people from his festering corruption and misrule, as jailed Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny put it. America and our allies are meting out stiff sanctions; and my colleagues and I here in Congress are working on additional measures to deliver punishing financial blows to Putin and his corrupt oligarchs. But we must consider how we arrived at this moment. Putin has, for decades, deployed corruption and kleptocracy to strengthen his grip on Russia's government and to project power and influence throughout the region. In the process, he decimated Russia's free press, attacked--physically and economically--all political opposition, and grew his own personal fortune to what is thought to be the largest in the world. I say ``thought to be'' because Putin's wealth is hidden behind shell corporations and nestled in tax havens, far from the view of the people he robs and oppresses. And along the way, he cultivated--through favors, force, or fortunes--a group of oligarchs who serve him. It is important to understand that Putin isn't special. We have plenty of kleptocrats around the globe.…”