Instead of giving a politician the keys to the city, it might be better to change the locks.

Doug Larson (1926–2017) was an American columnist and humorist known for concise, skeptical one-liners about politics and public life. This quip reflects a long tradition of American political humor that treats ceremonial honors—such as presenting “the keys to the city”—as empty gestures that can mask distrust of officials’ motives. Larson wrote during an era of heightened public cynicism about government (post-Watergate and amid recurring corruption scandals), and his work often distilled that mood into punchy aphorisms. The line is typically encountered in quotation collections and newspaper-style compilations of Larson’s sayings rather than tied to a single famous speech or event.

The joke turns a civic symbol of trust into a warning: if politicians are prone to misuse access and authority, the safest response is not to honor them but to restrict their power. “Keys to the city” stands for public confidence and open access to resources; “change the locks” implies defensive accountability—stronger safeguards, oversight, and limits on discretion. Larson’s humor works by exaggeration, but the underlying point is serious: institutions should be designed to withstand self-interest and corruption, regardless of who holds office. The line resonates because it captures a common voter fear that political power can be exploited once granted.