When you have access as a high ranking politician, to the taxpayer piggy bank, and can influence who gets what, it puts you in a really good position to play corruption games at the American publics expense.
Send money to foreign countries, and then those foreign countries do a little kickback to you. It's a win/win for all involved, except the poor American taxpayer.
We end up bankrolling their treason.
Isn't kickback essentially quid pro quo?
Kickback
A kickback is an illegal payment intended as compensation for favorable treatment or other improper services. The kickback may be money, a gift, credit, or anything of value. Paying or receiving kickbacks is a corrupt practice that interferes with an employee's or a public official’s ability to make unbiased decisions. It is often referred to as a bribe.
Kickbacks can take many forms, but all feature some sort of collusion between two parties. For example, the bookkeeper for a business or government office might approve an invoice for goods, knowing that the bill is inflated. The seller of the goods might then pay the bookkeeper part of the difference or some other kind of reward. Kickback schemes are among the most difficult white-collar crimes to detect and investigate.
It's illegal for U.S. companies, citizens, or residents to bribe foreign officials.
Kickbacks can also be used to buy a positive recommendation for the kickback provider. For example, a government employee responsible for managing contractors on an infrastructure project, such as the building of a bridge, might receive a kickback for choosing one contractor over another. This may result in a better-qualified contractor not winning the bid.
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/k/kickback.asp
These are some common kickback warning signs. They don't necessarily mean that anything nefarious is going on, but the more of them there are, the greater the likelihood.
No competitive bidding process (or lower bids are ignored)
Lack of appropriate supervision during the purchasing process
Higher-than-average prices for goods or services
Recommendation to use a vendor that others shun
A vendor with frequent legal or regulatory problems
Employees are too friendly with vendors
Management pressures staff to use a particular vendor
Vendors are in an industry where kickbacks are common
Employees continue to use vendors that provide poor products or services
Delivery dates are repeatedly missed