Editing Jean-Claude Duvalier (section)

===Political and economic factors===
Duvalier was invested with absolute power by the constitution. He took some steps to reform the regime, by releasing some [[political prisoner]]s and easing press [[censorship]]. However, there were no substantive changes to the regime's basic character. Opposition was not tolerated, and the legislature remained a [[Rubber stamp (politics)|rubber stamp]].{{citation needed|date=February 2019}}

Much of the Duvaliers' wealth came from the Régie du Tabac (Tobacco Administration). Duvalier used this "non-fiscal account", established decades earlier, as a [[tobacco]] [[monopoly]], but he later expanded it to include the proceeds from other government enterprises and used it as a [[slush fund]] for which no balance sheets were ever kept.<ref name= Metz/>

By neglecting his role in government, Duvalier squandered considerable domestic and foreign goodwill and facilitated the dominance of Haitian affairs by a clique of hardline Duvalierist cronies, the so-called "dinosaurs". Foreign officials and observers also seemed tolerant toward Duvalier in areas such as [[human rights]] monitoring and foreign countries were more generous to him with economic assistance. The [[Presidency of Richard Nixon|Nixon administration]] restored the United States aid program for Haiti in 1971.<ref name=Metz>{{cite book | last= Metz| first= Helen Chapin | author-link=Helen Chapin Metz | title = Dominican Republic and Haiti : Country Studies| publisher = Federal Research Division, Library of Congress| location= Washington, D.C.| date = December 1989| isbn=0-8444-1044-6}}</ref>