Athan Theoharis: (h/t TLF, [2])

FBI officials were interested in the sexual indiscretions of elected members of Congress. FBI agents were specifically encouraged to report and record any such discoveries and to do so discreetly. During an interview with the so-called Pike Committee in 1975, a former FBI agent described this practice. Puzzled over why such information was being collected, the agent claimed to have consulted his boss, FBI Assistant Director Cartha DeLoach. He then recounted DeLoach’s response: “The other night we picked up a situation where the Senator was seen drunk, in a hit-and-run accident, and some good-looking broad was with him. He [DeLoach] said, ‘We got the information, reported it in a memorandum’ and DeLoach—and this is an exact quote—he said ‘by noon of the next day the good Senator was aware that we had the information and we never had any trouble with him on appropriations since.’”

From the archive:

The evidence suggests that from an executive perspective, the most desirable employees may no longer necessarily be those with proven ability and judgment, but those who can be counted on to follow orders and be good "team players."