The phrase “quid pro quo” has been showing up in news reports ever since reports first came out about President Donald Trump’s phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The president is saying there was no quid pro quo and everyone is talking about this interesting little phrase that you really don’t hear that often.
If you’re not in law or business, you may not be familiar with a quid pro quo, but fortunately, this isn’t a difficult concept at all.
All it means is “something for something.” It comes from Latin, in case you were wondering and it just means that two people are exchanging a good, service, or favor.
From a legal standpoint, it means that two parties exchanged something of value to each of them.
When you go to the store to buy groceries, you are engaging in a quid pro quo arrangement. You are receiving food, whichW is valuable to you and the store is receiving your money, which also a thing of value.
When it comes to politics, quid pro quos can be negative, unethical or illegal.