Robert M. La Follette refuses a bribe…
1891 CE
Robert M. La Follette refuses a bribe offered by powerful Wisconsin republican Senator Philetus Sawyer.
According to his autobiography, La Follette experienced a political epiphany in 1891 after Sawyer attempted to bribe him.
La Follette claims that Sawyer offered the bribe so that La Follette would influence his brother-in-law, Judge Robert G. Siebecker, who was presiding over a case involving state funds that Republican officials had allegedly embezzled.
La Follette's public allegation of bribery precipitates a split with many friends and party leaders, though he continues to support Republican candidates like John Coit Spooner.
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