Asher Sisneros

George Washington Plunkitt was a man of means. He played the part of a patriotic statesman with a burning desire to do justice to New York City. More accurately, he was a man who took advantage of the opportunities presented to him. A man that history hasn’t looked favorably on. His motives weren’t patriotism. He wasn’t a statesman. His writing makes it apparent that the dollar was his idol. The dollar motivated him beyond anything else. In his autobiography, his actions were “reaping honest graft.” Today, we call it insider trading. In fairness to him, the practice wasn’t illegal; it was just unethical. Restrictions on insider trading didn’t come until much later. For that reason, he called his actions “reaping honest graft.” 

He worked in close association with Tammany Hall. His allegiance was to Tammany. His constitution was simple regarding politics: to receive votes, you must give people what they want. To expect favors, be patriotic to Tammany. The people that publicly supported Tammany received jobs when Tammany was in control. It was that simple. Politics was a simple game of taking from one man and giving to another. It was a game of promises and public favor. The secret to him came in knowing everyone. It came in walking the streets and gaining approbation from the people. Correction, he wanted approbation from the voters. 

His constituents were the first to receive jobs from Tammany. When Tammany held power in New York City, they gave jobs to the Tammany supporters. It was a logical course of action. One may presume that Tammany was almost cultish, but that’s not true. Tammany looked out for its supporters first, but there were numerous examples of Tammany Hall working with other political parties to advance bipartisan legislation. The Republicans were a group that vexed Plunkitt beyond anything else in politics. Yet, he found himself working with them on numerous ocasions. It was his opinion that Civil Service was the common enemy of every politician. Their purpose was to undermine the Democrats and Republicans alike. Civil Service would destroy party politics. There was no debate in his mind that if Tammany and the Republicans didn’t mutually attack the Civil Service, both parties would fall apart. Regardless, it was the Tammany supporters that he showered with favors. 

I cannot deny that Plunkitt was a curious man. His story is fascinating, and so is his character. Through his autobiography, I’ve seen no examples of stunning moral character. It appears that such qualities were absent in his life. All his actions were “justified” by votes or money. At no point in the book does he admit to doing something because it was right; he did it for leverage. Furthermore, he advertised it publicly and appeared proud of himself in the book. His arrogance is amusing, but I understand why his political career ended after the autobiography was published. While none of his actions were illegal, he proved to his voters that he was a self-centered man. He defamed himself.