Sollozzo made Vito a big offer for police and political protection: 30% of his profits--"in the first year your share would be three/four million. Then it would go up." Vito refused. By the time of the Don's Convention, Vito was in a weakened state and had to give in. His share? As Barzini said, "Of course he can present a bill for such services..." In other words, Vito was reduced to being in the rent-a-judge business.

Vito went along because he had to in order to guarantee Michael's safe return, and also to reinforce his "weak" appearance. Michael presumably went along with the rent-a-judge arrangement for the same reason. But, after the Great Massacre of 1955, I'm wondering what Michael's position was on drugs. I can't see him walking away from a source of income on "moral scruples." But I also don't see him retaining the rent-a-judge arrangement since he was now the most powerful of the Dons. What do you think his attitude and arrangements were?

He relocated to Vegas and the casino business and left the drugs (which would still have been big $$$) to his NY people to handle.

I think that Michael would have expanded the political protection and financing of drug operations but would have eschewed direct involvement in importation or sales-at least at first. He and his direct reports always would have had several degrees of separation. Any moral disdain would have been shunted aside with "If we don't do it, someone else will" statements.

Im guessing Vito told Michael to get rid of the drug business after the massacre takes place. There is no reason to continue down that path when the casion business so much profitable anyways, plus there always continuing to expand there business.

Pentangeli complains about the Rosatos who sell dope. So I guess that Clemenza, Pentangeli and the rest of the NY gang tried to avoid the drug business.

Another question is: Who inherited Tattaglia's brothel business which Vito thought of as dirty?

Drug business was booming post war. I think there would have been too much money involved for Michael to cease the political protection that the Corleone Family was providing. I think once he had eliminated the other Family heads he would have expanded his Family involvement. Behind the scenes and with dispassion but money is money.

On the other hand brothels weren't quite the money makers they had been because of declining mass immigration and loosening social standards. But we know that Fredo oversaw at least one brothel in Nevada. So I think Michael would have avoided the prostitution business in NY-considering it too little money for too much stigma.

The answer is in GFIII. When Zasa comes to the party to speak to Michael about Vincent, Michael hauls Vincent into the den and Vincent tells Michael that Zasa has turned the old neighborhoods into a "sewer." Later when Vincent talks to the two old ladies in the neighborhood, one of them says that Zasa's people are selling "dope to our children." Then in Atlantic City after Zasa receives no money from Michael, one of the points of contention is brought up by Michael when he asks Zasa whether or not he guarantees his people "don't deal drugs in thise neighborhoods."

This tells me that Michael was still operating under the arrangement agreed upon by Vito. Drugs could not be sold to children and not in the Italian neighborhoods.

No question Michael did not directly involved himself too much in the day to day operations of the olive oil business, he had surrogates like Pentangeli, but as we have said in many other threads Michael wanted to have his his cake and eat it too as far as legitimacy was concerned.

I can't see Michael walking away from any source of money, including drugs and prostitution. I think he probably had the same arrangement with Pentangeli that real-life Dons have with their underlings: Don't get caught dealing drugs, but when you kick money upstairs, I won't ask where it came from.