Sources used in this document:

But the New Jersey politicians' desires to profit from their position did not end there. One of the men involved in the money-laundering scheme introduced Dwek to other officials. "Mr. Dwek -- now operating under an assumed identity, according to people involved in the case -- honed an approach: introduced to a local influence-peddler, he would say he was looking to build high-rises or other projects in their city or county. He would offer $5,000 in cash for an upcoming campaign, or as a straight-up bribe, with the promise of more to come, and with earnest pleas that his official requests be 'taken care of.' And he would pull the money out of the trunk of his car" (Halbfinger 2009).

This was fundamentally in violation of one of the most important cornerstones of the Code of Ethics of the American Society for Public Administrators: "[To] maintain truthfulness and honesty and to not compromise them for advancement, honor, or personal gain" (III.1). In this instance, the New Jersey state officials were using their positions purely for personal gain, not to serve the needs of the public. They made decisions regarding projects that would affect the community with an eye upon how much they could gain with their deal with Dwek, not based upon the needs of their constituency. Ethical guidelines are vitally necessary for public administrators to follow, given the heavy responsibility they shoulder. "At any phase in the budgetary process, there are many dilemmas present. Decisions are made that favor some values such as efficiency, political responsiveness, preserving the public interest over others. It is not a simple matter of determining what constitutes a right vs. A wrong allocation decision; instead choices must be made between competing 'right' choices" (Franklin & Raadschelders 2004: 457).

When these suppositions are violated, then the overall trust of the public in public officials and public institutions is impinged upon. Unethical behavior by members invested with the public's trust does not merely damage the politician's own reputations, but also the reputation of government as a whole. New Jersey's bad reputation as a particularly unethical place for government creates a self-perpetuating cycle. Because higher officials take ethical violations for granted, public officials are more inclined take a lax attitude towards their obligations, rationalizing that there is no incentive to do