特威德

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Tweed, William Marcy

俗称特威德老大(Boss Tweed)

美国政客。原为一名会计和义勇消防队员。任市参议员期间(1851~1856),在坦曼尼协会具有影响力,并在市政府中担任要职。後来安插几个夥伴担任市政要职,建立了一个後来称为「特威德集团」的组织。他身为坦曼尼协会总务委员会的负责人(1860年起),掌握了民主党在各市政职位上的提名人选。特威德还开办过一家律师事务所,以提供「法律服务」给城市承包商和企业而收取大量酬金。他在被选入州参议院後(1868),还成为坦曼尼协会的领导人,并控制城市和州政府的政治特权。後来掌管市财政局,贪污了约3千万~2亿美元。特威德日益成为改革运动的矢的,终因报社(包括纳斯特所作的刊登在《哈泼周刊》上的讽刺画)及律师狄尔登的带头揭发而受审,结果罪证确凿,入狱服刑(1873~1875、1876~1878)。

1823~1878年

Tweed, William Marcy

U.S. politician. Born in New York City, he initially worked as a bookkeeper and volunteer firefighter. As city alderman (1851-56), he gained influence in Tammany Hall and obtained important positions in city government. He appointed political cronies to key city posts and built a group later called the Tweed ring. As head of Tammany's general committee (from 1860), he controlled the Democratic Party's nominations to all city positions. He opened a law office to receive payments for “legal services” from city contractors and corporations. Elected to the state senate (1868), he also became Tammany's grand sachem (leader) and controlled city and state political patronage. He gained control of the city treasury and plundered sums estimated at $30-200 million. Reformers and exposure by the press, including Thomas Nast's cartoons in Harper's Weekly, brought prosecution, led by Samuel Tilden, that convicted Tweed and sentenced him to prison (1873-75, 1876-78).