"Unhappily for them, years' worth of Supreme Court precedent holds that section 371 “is not confined to fraud as that term has been defined in the common law,” see Dennis v. United States, 384 U.S. 855, 861, 86 S.Ct. 1840, 16 L.Ed.2d 973 (1966) ; that defrauding the government under section 371 means obstructing the operation of any government agency by any “deceit, craft or trickery, or at least by means that are dishonest,” see Hammerschmidt v. United States, 265 U.S. 182, 188, 44 S.Ct. 511, 68 L.Ed. 968 (1924) ; and that the conspiracies need not aim to deprive the government of property or money, see id., because the act is written “broad enough ... to include any conspiracy for the purpose of impairing, obstructing, or defeating the lawful function of any” government “department,” see Haas v. Henkel, 216 U.S. 462, 479, 30 S.Ct. 249, 54 L.Ed. 569 (1910)."
Framing: assertive ·
First seen: 2026-09-05 ·
Last seen: 2026-09-05 ·
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