Why do you think politicians like roads and bridges so much?

This article gives whole new meaning to considerations of the usual suspects.

The impact of public officials’ corruption on the size and allocation of U.S. state spending, Leighton Walter Kille (Journalist's Resource)

 ... A 2014 study in Public Administration Review, “The Impact of Public Officials’ Corruption on the Size and Allocation of U.S. State Spending,” looks at the impact of government corruption on states’ expenditures.

The study’s findings include:

Construction projects find particular favor because they present a wealth of corruption opportunities: “First, construction involves large, complex, nonstandard activities, so the quality of construction can be very hard to assess. Second, domestic and international construction industries are dominated by a few monopolistic firms. Third, the industry is closely linked to the government. Governments have major roles as ‘clients, regulators, and owners’ of construction companies. It is very common to bribe government officials to gain or alter contracts and to circumvent regulations related to construction.”