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But almost all political donations, I would think, are because the entity donating already supports the viewpoint of the elected official.

Is it bribing if there isn't a quid pro quo? I can give a congressperson a bunch of money with a note attached saying "Don't vote for bill XYZ", but there is no promise or even acknowledgement from the congressperson that they will do anything at all for you.

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there's also the negative pressure. We might see a Telco give 1k to 50 congressmen and think they bribed cheaply, which they did. But it also means if you betray their trust they're willing to spend 50k on your opponent. Also, making sure a plurality of people in the room have some stake in the Telco can prevent uncomfortable conversations from even arising. After all, there are always other issues to work on that won't upset your colleagues

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