- " 'We end up with a situation where decision-making is concentrated in the President's Office,' said Saakian. 'Absolute power corrupts absolutely.
It was only a matter of time before someone in the inner circle started enriching themselves or tried to play their own game'."
The fact remains that Zelensky and his Servant of the People political party ran for election in 2019 promising to crack down on corruption, and they have repeatedly delivered on their promise -- see my table above.
The current arrests are not even the largest, that was back in 2023, a Zelensky ally arrested for embezzling nearly $2 billion.
BTW, while we're on this subject -- the US also has a history of presidential family & aids being investigated & prosecuted for corruption, including (partial listing):
US Presidential Relatives & Aides Investigated/Prosecuted for Corruption:
| Administration | Relative / Aide | What Happened |
|---|---|---|
| Richard Nixon (1969–1974) | H.R. Haldeman (Chief of Staff); John Ehrlichman (Domestic Affairs Advisor) | Convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and perjury in the Watergate scandal. |
| Jimmy Carter (1977–1981) | Billy Carter (brother) | Investigated by Senate in 1980 (“Billygate”) for ties to Libya and acting as an unregistered foreign agent; no conviction. |
| T. Bertram "Bert" Lance (Director of OMB, campaign supporter) | Resigned in 1977 amid allegations of banking improprieties; indicted in 1980 for bank fraud and conspiracy but acquitted. | |
| Ronald Reagan (1981–1989) | John Poindexter (National Security Advisor); Caspar Weinberger (Defense Secretary) | Indicted in the Iran–Contra affair for lying to Congress and involvement in covert arms-for-hostages scheme. Weinberger and several others were pardoned by George H.W. Bush in 1992. |
| George H.W. Bush (1989–1993) | Neil Bush (son) | Investigated for role in Silverado Savings & Loan collapse; settled civil charges and paid fines. |
| Bill Clinton (1993–2001) | Roger Clinton (half-brother) | Convicted of cocaine distribution in 1985 (pre-presidency); investigated during presidency; pardoned by Bill Clinton in 2001. |
| Webster Hubbell (Associate Attorney General, longtime ally) | Convicted in 1995 of mail fraud and tax evasion related to law firm billing practices. | |
| George W. Bush (2001–2009) | Scooter Libby (Chief of Staff to VP Cheney) | Convicted in 2007 of perjury and obstruction of justice in the Valerie Plame CIA leak case; sentence commuted by George W. Bush in 2007, later fully pardoned by Donald Trump in 2018. |
| Barack Obama (2009–2017) | James Comey (FBI Director); John Brennan (CIA Director); Peter Strzok (FBI official); Lisa Page (FBI lawyer); James Clapper (DNI) | No major prosecutions during presidency. Post‑presidency: Comey indicted in 2025; Brennan, Strzok, Page, and Clapper subpoenaed by federal grand jury. |
| Donald Trump (2017–2021, 2025– ) | Paul Manafort (2016 campaign chairman) | Convicted in 2018 of tax fraud and bank fraud; pardoned by Donald Trump in December 2020. |
| Michael Cohen (personal lawyer) | Convicted in 2018 of campaign finance violations and tax fraud. | |
| Joe Biden (2021–2025) | Hunter Biden (son) | Indicted in 2023 on gun-related charges; investigated for tax issues and foreign business dealings. |
Point is: vigorous prosecutions of corruption can be a sign of a functioning democracy and, in this case, of Zelensky fulfilling his 2019 campaign promise to clean up government.


Worked just enough.