The scandal implicated the leadership of the Union Pacific railroad, including Congressman Oakes Ames, and it snared Schuyler Colfax, the sitting vice president of the United States; Congressman James A. Garfield, James G. Blaine, the speaker of the House; and a bevy of leading senators and representatives. Some would be ruined; most would only be tainted. It took a heavy load of scandal to sink a Gilded Age politician.
