It's not corruption unless there is intent to defraud. That is not the case. As a formerly elected official in a small town the issue was simply that we didn't have the resources. We were all basically volunteer as our pay was a few hundred a year. Elections were ran as simply as they could be as the most we could put in was an hour or two per week. Running the meetings alone were a huge hassle. There was an overwhelming sense of just sticking to the status quo as that was the simplest thing to do.

From the outside, we certainly had plenty of folks calling us corrupt for not always getting 3 closed bids on every project or paying Joe under the table for cutting grass. Were these true allegations? Yes, but it wasn't corruption. What do you do when the grass needs to be cut because if it's not, we'll get rats in the town hall and no one responds to you calls? You call Joe who cut just your personal grass the other day and ask him to please just get it done asap because no one has time. This isn't done because we're trying to get a favor, we just needed it done quickly and reliably.

Do you also think it’s not discrimination if it’s because you just can’t afford to take a shot with a non-white or woman, if your experience tells you that white men are easier to deal with?

After all, there’s no ulterior motives in racial or sexual bias when it comes to hiring either, right?

Of course it’s easier and feels better to let the scant public funds go to people you know. That doesn’t mean it’s not corruption.

> This isn't done because we're trying to get a favor, we just needed it done quickly and reliably.

You still seem hung up on that there needs to be some form of quid-pro-quo or personal gain going on to count. That is not the case.

And well, there’s a clear difference in scale between asking Joe to cut the grass and not proactively putting the offer out (which still counts but is what it is) vs actively denying authority (however little) of your own publicly elected auditors for several years.

> From the outside, we certainly had plenty of folks calling us corrupt for not always getting 3 closed bids on every project or paying Joe under the table for cutting grass. Were these true allegations? Yes, but it wasn't corruption.

You are quite literally admitting to corruption. You’re justifying it for a common good, which… is emotionally understandable but also basically how well-meaning people justify interacting with every level or scale of corruption.