"To someone seeking power, the poorest man is the most useful." Sallust   Clodius began his tribuniciate on its first day with the introduction of four proposed laws to the senate. These were called, " quattuor leges perniciosae" by Asconius. Their purpose was quite transparent to all. The first two were obviously designed to further increase the political power of Clodius with the people, the third was an attempt to stop legislation by Clodius being blocked by augury. The fourth was a sop to the senate as well as a method of Clodius for preventing his being dropped from his office by the censor. The entire package was a brilliant move. Each law was of real benefit to the people or the senate while at the same time adding to and protecting the personal power of Clodius.The senate was in a state of seige. The gangs of Clodius were poised in the streets. All four laws were enacted. The following are the first four laws of Publius Clodius Pulcher. LEX DE COLLEGIIS In 64 the senate had passed a law that allowed it to abolish whichever collegia it deemed to be subversive to the state. At the same time it banned the popular celebration of The Ludi Compitalicii celebrated in the streets in connection with The Lares Compitales. These observances were very important to the people and for many the only way to achieve social standing within their communities. Clodius had long used gangs of plebeians as a violent tool against the senate and enlisting an entire collegium enhanced the effectiveness of this technique, but the danger of abolishment by the senate was a likelihood. This law would make that impossible . Furthermore, the law provided for the enrollment of any new collegia which Clodius could propagate. We see here a perfect example of the popularist politician giving power to the people for his own use. The Roman Senate saw it at least as clearly as we do. To increase the power of Clodius to intimidate the senate with civil violence would have been illogical, yet to vote against the act would have at once, had the same violent effect that they wished to avoid. Clodius had created a conundrum which seemed to have no immediate solution. LEX FRUMENTARIA With the lex frumentaria Clodius bought the loyalties of the people outright. This law provided free of charge 5 modii (approx.1 bushel plus 1 peck) a month of grain to every Roman citizen over the age of 10. Although the price of grain had been for some time, subsidized by the state, it was now to become a national dole. At a stroke Clodius freed the plebeians from fear of famine. His position in the minds of the people would be unassailable. He knew it and the senate knew it. He had the senate in a strangle hold and there was nothing they could do about it. No one would dare to vote against this bill and hope to go into the streets of Rome again, no one but Cicero, the only dissenting vote. The cost to Rome would be about 108 million sesterces per year to feed 300 thousand citizens. This was a large amount but the government had already been paying a part of the cost and the increase would be well within what Rome could afford at the time. There was more to be gained by Clodius than meets the eye. He would implement the new law and in doing so control the grain market in the city even after his tribuniciate. LEX DE AGENDO CUM POPULO This third law has caused a great deal of discussion among scholars over the years. Indeed, there is still no real consensus about it. It is certain that it would have made political assembly and legislation lawful on dies fasti and further allowed the senate to operate in the period between the announcement of elections and the elections themselves. This would have been popular with the senators and may be seen as sweetening the legislative package. There is however a distinct benefit to Clodius as always, in that it would allow him to pass legislation intended to sway a vote in the last days before an election. Others of course, could make use of this new campaigning tool. The second part of the law has to do with limiting the power of Obnuntiatio which had several times been used to obstruct legislation by the claims of inauspicious omens. Although Cicero says that Clodius did away with this religious tradition, it is only Ciceronian hyperbole. The law only makes it imperative that the obnuntiatio be presented in person before the senate. This seems to prevent a re occurrence of the fiasco of the year of Bilbus when he spent a whole year in his house obstructing the business of the senate by sending lictors to announce that he considered every day to be inauspicious. According to the new law, he would have had to appear before the senate in person. It is most certainly an improvement over the old law and would work to the benefit of the entire senate. This was a law which was useful to the legislative process of the senate and they recognized it as such.   LEX CLODIA DE CENSORIA NOTIONE Here was the reward to the senate for passing the entire package. With one stroke, Clodius removed the sword which hung over all persons in public office. It restricted the power of the censor to arbitrarily remove him from office. It did not destroy the office, as Cicero contends, but rather required a hearing and witnesses. It made the removal not a personal choice, but rather a legal action governed by rules. In the senate, this was tantamount to the lex frumentaria in the streets. There was no person in public office who would object to this. Of course, it applied to Clodius as well. In the end, the brother of Clodius became censor after his death and by the rules of this law dropped Milo from the senatorial roles.   The law in Rome, was a malleable thing. Laws made could be undone by later legislators. The Lex Frumentaria would be undone and then reinstated to last through the larger part of the history of Rome. Perhaps the motive for it was not the best , yet the result was most certainly to the benefit of the people. Censorial powers would later be restored, but the power of abnuntiatio would never be the same. The mark left upon Rome by Clodius was not at all negative. Even the bloody civil disturbances by the Clodiani had a positive effect. In theory, under a republic all power is vested in the people and wielded by their elected representatives. The power of the people was made saliently manifest in the time of Clodius. It would not last much longer. Augustus was careful of it. After that it was ended. The people may rule in theory, but legions rule in practice. In the end it was the sword which ruled, not the senate, nor even the replaceable imperator. Clodius shows no monarchial aspirations, He wanted to be the most powerful, but always within the tradition of republicanism. In this, he was the last of the republicans.Caesar would follow and after him The Augustus.