peculation

Ukraine is still assessed as more corrupt than neighbors such as Poland and Romania, but it is considerably less corrupt than Russia — whose badly led and badly equipped army is paying the price for so much high-level peculation.

Set from 1917 to 1923, it covers this country’s entrance into the First World War, the scourge of the 1918 flu pandemic, and the election of 1920 that produced an inattentive Warren G. Harding, whose tenure — so unavoidably reminiscent of a more recent administration — saw prodigious peculation and self-dealing.

“He might pervert his administration into a scheme of peculation or oppression,” he said, according to the minutes.

Professor Turley: In the end, the framers would reject various prior standards including “corruption,” “obtaining office by improper means,” betraying his trust to a foreign power, “negligence,” “perfidy,” “peculation” and “oppression.”

“He might pervert his administration into a scheme of peculation or oppression. He might betray his trust to foreign powers.”