As I read about the Abramoff “scandal,” I am struck by the fact that people still think that somehow Congress is “corrupted” by money. In fact, it is the activities of Congress — and government in general — that create the atmosphere in which the Jack Abramoffs of the world thrive.

How was it that Abramoff was able to collect huge sums of money? People paid him because Congress has the power to change the rules that could bankrupt these organizations overnight. Furthermore, members of Congress flout their power and use it to extract concessions from people.

Furthermore, one realizes that a Jack Abramoff and other lobbyists who make fabulous sums of money could not do this in a real business. While the political and intellectual classes in this country declare themselves morally superior to people in business, in reality the world of business must operate according to rules and traditions that make Congress and other governmental bodies look like the moral cesspools that they are.

Murray Rothbard was correct when he likened government to a mafia, except that the mafia at least provides services that people want.