Robert Moses’ power stemmed from deceit and threats. In the beginning of the reading, a kerfuffle between Moses and the Yale swim team captain, Ed Richards, was described. Here, Moses wanted to raise money through deceit, by telling Og Reid that the money was going only to the swimming team and not to an association. Richards had protested this idea, to which Moses threatened to leave the team. Forty-five years later, when Moses realized he wouldn’t be sworn in as a Planning Commissioner under the new mayor, he marched into the mayor’s office and threatened to resign if he did not get his position as Planning Commissioner back. Here, a pattern was emerging. Since the mayor had given in, Moses acquired the power to spend money uncaringly and to step all over the public, evicting people carelessly to make room for his numerous projects. Although he had wanted to dedicate his life to public service, his intentions shifted to selfishness, corruption continued its grasp on his motivations, and he used blackmail and the media to get what he wanted.
