06/01/12 06/01/12 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] >> from pacifica, this is "democracy now!" >> florida has provided states across the country with a blueprint for voter suppression of minorities, seniors, students, and other democratic voters. >> the justice department has ordered florida to stop a massive voter purge underway targeting latinos and democrats. we will speak with florida congress member ted deutch and a woman who says she was purged of voting after 40 years. in another victory for marriage equality, a federal appeals

court has struck down the defense of marriage act following a lawsuit by the state of massachusetts and others. >> it is unconstitutional for the federal government to create a system of first and second class marriages and it does harm to massachusetts and families of massachusetts every day. >> all of that and more coming up. this is "democracy now!," democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. a federal appeals court has struck down the defense america act, known as doma, for discriminating against same-sex couples. the unanimous decision down the federal government does not have the authority to deny benefits to same-sex couples in states such as massachusetts, which has approved gay marriage. the ruling is expected to be appealed and ultimately end up before the supreme court. in a statement, the marriage equality group freedom to marry called the decision --

doma latere more on in the broadcast. the new york times has revealed president obama has waged a major cyberweapons operation against iran since the early days of his administration. the program, known as olympic games, has been used to sabotage the computer systems at iran's nuclear facilities. it began under the bush administration, but was significantly expanded when obama took office in 2009. obama decided to continue the program in 2010, even after part of it became public when it accidentally unleashed a computer worm known as suxtenet, -- across the global internet. developed with the help of israeli intelligence, suxtenet is said to have destroyed some of iran's centrifuges, but the full extent of the damage is unclear. the obama administration's

cybercampaign in iran is believed to be the first sustained effort by one country to destroy another's infrastructure through computer attacks. house lawmakers have defeated the bill that would have banned abortions based on the sex of the fetus. while most legislators voted in favor of the prenatal nondiscrimination act, or prenda, it fell 30 votes short of the two-thirds majority needed to pass. the bill would have opposed possible fines and prison sentences of up to five years on doctors who knowingly performed abortions based on sex and would have required health care providers to report suspected violations. republican supporters attempted to cast the ban as pro woman, but critics say it was a bid to further curtail access to safe abortion. the justice department is maintaining the right to continue the warrantless tracking of suspects with gps despite a supreme court ruling that doing so is illegal.

the high court ruled in january that police monitoring through attaching a gps to a suspect's vehicle is a constitutionally protected search. the ruling marked a defeat for the obama administration, which had fought to overturn an appeals court ruling that warrants are required. but in court arguments thursday, the justice department said the warrantless tracking remains legal because the supreme court did not specifically state that a search warrant is required in other cases. the u.n. human rights council is holding an emergency session on syria in the wake of the massacre of more than 100 people in houla, one week ago. the resolution is expected to be approved today which plans pro- government forces for the attacks as part of repeated and systematic violations of human rights by the regime of president bashar al-assad. on thursday, a spokesperson insisted the killings in houla are carried out by rebels. >> they have never protested or

carried weapons against the government. they disagreed with the armed terrorist groups. the aim of these groups is to bring foreign military intervention against the country in any form in any way. >> syrian activists say pro- government forces have committed a new mass killing of civilians. thursday, 13 factory workers reportedly were forced out a bus and shot dead near the western town. in washington, press secretary jay carney warned the al-assad regime is running out of time to see a peaceful resolution to the more than yearlong uprising. >> al-assad's partnership with iran is a direct defense to the syrian people, the revolution, and arabs across northern middle east and africa. we are focused on preventing iran to continually financially, which really, and logistical support their syrian regime. we have made clear and others

have made clear the window of opportunity to allow for peaceful political transition in syria will not remain open for long. >> in israel and the occupied territories, an israeli soldier and a palestinian militant have been killed in an incident along israel's border with the gaza strip. the militant entered israel and killed a soldier before been shot dead. israel fired missiles, injuring three people. it is one day after israel return the remains of 91 palestinian militants who died in various attacks over the years. thousands of people marched to the turkish city of istanbul on thursday to mark the second anniversary of the deadly israeli raid on the gaza-bound aid ship. nine turkish activists, including one with u.s. citizenship, were killed when israeli commandos stormed the mavi marmara in international waters. earlier this week, a turkish

court approved an indictment seeking multiple life sentences for four former military commanders over their alleged involvement in the raid. walmart has become the latest corporation to drop out of the american legislative exchange council, the conservative group ties to the koch brothers. alec has come into the limelight but the world's largest retailer is also the biggest seller of firearms in the united states. new york mayor michael bloomberg has unveiled a proposal to ban larger sodas as an effort to address obesity. nyc health commissioner said the plan would improve the health and well-being of new yorkers. >> we have a crisis of obesity and the people often go with the default choice. if it is something which is very unhealthy, it is a program for the government to say we think

the default choice should be healthier. people still have the choice to purchase more. they do not have the choice to purchase trans fat in restaurants, but they do have the choice to purchase more sugary beverages if they want to. >> coca-cola and mcdonald's but condemned the proposal, which would prohibit many places in the city from selling soft drinks in cuts larger than 16 ounces. it is the equivalent of a small at mcdonald's. and mcdonnell spokesperson called the band "narrowly focused and misguided while coca-cola also criticized is saying, "new yorkers expect and deserve better than this." public health advocates have hailed it as a necessary move in the fight against obesity. reuters is reporting exxonmobil plans to build a multi-billion dollar chemical plant in texas. the proposed plant would produce 1.5 million tons annually a key material used in

the production of plastics. while the company previously said it had no plans to extend the chemical production in the u.s., reuters reports the natural-gas used in chemical production may have prompted the change. other countries including dow and royal dutch shell have also announced plans to expand chemical production in the u.s. former senator and presidential candidate john edwards has evaded conviction and a highly publicized trial for allegations of campaign fraud. on thursday, north carolina jury found edwards not guilty on one count and failed to reach a verdict on five others, prompting the judge to declare a mistrial. edward was accused of funneling campaign donations to cover up an extramarital affair that led to his fathering of an out-of- wedlock child. prosecutors say edwards used donor funds to hide his lover and her baby in order to protect his campaign, but defense

attorneys say edwards was seeking to shield his actions from his family. speaking outside the courthouse, john edwards said he believes he was prosecuted for actions that were personal failings, but not illegal. >> i want to make sure that everyone hears from me and from my voice that while i do not believe i did anything illegal or ever thought i was doing anything illegal, i did an awful, awful lot that was wrong. and there is no one else responsible for my sins. >> the former senator john edwards. those are some of the headlines. this is "democracy now!," democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. the justice department has ordered florida, a key swing state, to in a controversial voter purge that has primarily targeted latino, democratic and independent-minded voters some democratic politicians have expressed fear the perched atop mitt romney when the state in

november. earlier this month, florida began using an outdated driver's license database to identify more than 180,000 non-citizens who are registered to vote. it later whittled the list down to 2600 voters and forwarded those names to counties. local election supervisors then sent letters to voters on the list, telling them to prove their citizenship within 30 days or be purged from the rolls. this comes in a state or nearly 12,000 eligible voters were purged from the rolls after the were wrongly identified as felons in 2000. that year's presidential election between george w. bush and al gore was decided by just 537 votes in the sunshine florida. this time, the flawed effort to clean up florida's voter rolls meant numerous u.s. citizens were caught in the purge. among them was a 91-year-old

world war ii veteran bill internicola. >> i have been married to my wife for 60 plus years. >> i am disgusted and annoyed this should happen in our country. he served his country. he has been a good citizen. he has voted his whole life, and now he should have this problem coming to florida? >> similar reports have surfaced across florida. more than 350 wrongly targeted eligible voters have been identified in miami dade county. and investigation by the miami herald, the largest group of voters affected by the purge are latino, democratic and independent-minded voters. despite widespread criticism, florida's republican administration has stood by its efforts. thursday, the department of justice stepped in to demand florida cease its voter purge, saying the process had not been

cleared under the voting rights act. a letter from the doj's civil rights division called for florida to -- for more, we're joined by three guests. from capitol hill, democratic congress member ted deutch of florida, one of six members of congress who wrote to gov. rick scott demanding the state stop cleaning its voter rolls since the process "fails to meet the basic standards of accountability." we're also joined by maureen russo in fort lauderdale, florida, one of congress member this is "democracy now!," democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. 's constituents who received a letter telling her to prefer citizenship or she would lose the right to vote. in new york, diana sen, part of a coalition of civil-rights groups working to protect latino voters in florida and elsewhere. congress member deutch, can you

tell us what is happening? >> what we have seen in florida is an effort on a massive scale by gov. sky to suppress the vote to make it more difficult for people to vote in florida. but there is a list of 182,000 names that the governor has delivered to supervisors of elections throughout the state. many on that list are u.s. citizens. nevertheless, the governor has said they need to be stricken from the voter rolls. you talk about bill internicola. there's another world war ii veteran from the tampa area who also received a letter. it is outrageous, a brazen attempt by the governor to suppress voter turnout. that is why we have got involved. that is why the news from the department of justice is so important. >> talk about the letter that was sent to florida from the department of justice.

>> the department of justice late last night sent a letter to the secretary of state telling the secretary of state, demanding the secretary of state stop this purge for the reasons you mentioned to. it violates federal law. the the part of justice has given the state a week to report, to advise the doj how it is they're going to comply with this demand and has made it clear they're going back to reconsider when they see the results. if the state stops the voter purge, that will be great news for all of us. if they continue on full speed ahead, the doj, my hope, is they will proceed with a lawsuit to make this come to an end. >> maureen russo, how long have you been voting in florida? >are you able to hear me?

we're going to -- >> good morning. >> how long have you been voting? >> i have been voting for 40 years. >> 40 years. so what happened? can you describe the letter you received? >> i received a letter asking me to prove i am a u.s. citizen. i sent my passport and i did receive a phone call saying it was a mistake that they sent a letter, but i did ask for something in writing. so when i go to the polls in november, i can go there confidently knowing i have some sort of proof that i am a u.s. citizen and that i have proven that. >> who was it that call to after you receive the letter to say

the letter should not have been sent to you? >> dr. brenda snipes. >> who is she? >> shias the supervisor of elections and board county. >> did she explain why it was your been told your purged from the polls that he could not present the proper id? >> no, she did not explain anything, just apologized to me. >> why is it, maureen russo, you believe you were targeted with this letter? >> i believe it is because i am a registered democrat. >> did you say that to the caller? >> excuse me? >> did you say that to the woman who called you? >> no, i did not. i really did not think that at the time. as the days have gone on, i am

starting to think that more and more. >> and what guarantee do you have that when you go to the polls you will be able to vote? did they send you a letter saying they had made a mistake? it was dr. bennis snipes from broward county that call to personally? >> yes. no, i have not been sent anything in writing. i am hoping i get that. >> i want to go to the elections supervisor dr. brenda snipes who said on thursday she will seek more information about the 259 potential non-citizens her office was alerted to. >> people say, i registered to vote. we know we have lots of different groups to ask people to get registered to vote. maybe they do not understand english that well.

many of these individuals have never voted. >> diana sen, explain how your you are involved in this case. >> we are a civil rights group we sued fallujah county for not having ballots in spanish. we've been monitoring the situation. we're particularly concerned on the list, over 50% of those on the list are hispanic. we believe this is targeting latinos and that this is in violation of the federal voting rights act. >> how? >> one thought it disproportionately affects latinos and targeting latinos. we believe that the way they're compiling this list is they're looking at the department of motor vehicles database.

that data base, in particular, does not even ask -- to get a driver's license, you do not have to be a citizen in florida. you have a database that does not even need or require citizenship for a license. they're taking those records, some are even 12, 15 years old, and taking out list, allegedly, picking people they think are non-citizens. from what we are able to see, that is what is happening. many of these people have since become citizens, or as you mentioned, the 91-year-old war veteran who has always been a citizen. we believe the lists are flawed. we believe what every database they use, the department of motor vehicles, is outdated and flawed, and does not even compile the citizenship information they are looking into. we're very concerned brigit opposite, the latino vote is very important.

voting is an american right. everyone should be concerned about it. >> on thursday, florida's republican party chair person, lenny curry, defended the state's attempt to purge thousands of voters based on what he appeared to met was flawed data. this is what he said on msnbc. >> this process is to ensure that non-citizens do not cast a vote in this election and in future elections. to be sure, there are certainly some issues with the data. i heard your opening statement that an army veteran was identified, presented his paper work, and will not be removed from the voter rolls. we can fix this. the department of homeland security has a database that tracks immigration from beginning to end. the president obama's administration would release the information of that data base and that is cross check, it would be less likely that people would be contacted that are in fact united states citizens. the administration does not want to do it.

why? they want to politicize this and make it a political discussion rather than one about operating under the rule of law. >> for his republican party chair person. congressmember ted deutch, your response to this issue that it was the fault of the obama administration who should be handing over immigration the permission from the department of homeland security? >> it is sad when you listen to that. for him to claim this is somehow a political issue, even as he tries to focus the attention on president obama, is shameful. this is not a political issue. it is a situation where we know thus far over 20%, at least 20% of the people who received a notice telling them they are not a citizen and do not have a right to vote, indeed, are eligible voters. statewide, what mr. lenny curry was talking about, those few

problems, that could mean tens of thousands of floridians will lose the right to vote. they will get a notice the says, please provide us -- he said, some paperwork. and if you do not do it within 30 days,e will strike you from the rolls. thousands of people could go to the polls in november and things to gov. scott, they will not be eligible to vote in the longer. i wish the governor and people in his administration would quiaddress the real flaws. as the justice department points out, it is illegal. >> what is the big deal? justin in your papers? the idea of putting the burden on the voter, rather than the state? >> these are registered voters. they have already properly registered. they have voted multiple times. they have the right to vote. i think the key is we have to look at it from if you vote and

you're not a citizen, that is a crime. people are not going to have criminal liability to vote -- >> what about the demand the department of homeland security handover information? >> we find that problematic. that is the onus on the federal government, which is already overburdened by immigration matters. two, we believe there are issues as well with matching data bases, particularly with latino voters, which we know are being disproportionately affected here. many latino voters have two last names. there are hyphens and very different issues with the names. there is a large possibility of error if you actually take the database and change it. in florida, they have this issue with surnames not imagine, they would try to kick out voters.

that also had a disproportionate effect on latino voters. there were errors in the order and the surnames and the-nation. >> we will come back to this discussion with diana sen, maureen russo who has been assured now by the broward county supervisor she will not be purged but is not received a letter of this but just a letter that she had to prove she was a boater, and congress member ted deutch, democrat from florida state. ♪ [music break] ♪ [music break]

>> this is "democracy now!," democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. florida congressmember deutsch, i would ask about the new voter registration rolls of florida. on thursday, federal judge blocked part of the state's controversial restrictions and groups conducting voter registration read a u.s. district judge in tallahassee on

florida's lot "harsh and impractical for imposing fines on groups that failed to turn in registration forms within 48 hours of collecting them." he blocked enforcement of the deadline. >> that is right. that was a very important step forward in our battle against the governor's efforts to suppress the vote, and after being waged a nationwide, as you know. the voter suppression law that passed in florida did include these provisions that have now been found unconstitutional, that deal with the issue of how to register voters. the league of women voters stop registering because of these fines. there are other provisions of the law that remain. it cuts down on the number of early voting hours. the law also makes it easier to throw out ballots if there's a change in signature, which affects seniors overwhelmingly. there is this ongoing onslaught

against the rights of voters to participate in elections. it is no surprise the targets, when you look at the impact these laws have, skew overwhelmingly to groups that historically have voted democratic. that is no surprise. we're seeing that all over the country. >> in 2008, diana sen, your part of a florida suit about florida counties not having spanish- language ballots. what has come of that? >> we ended up selling out lawsuit. and now volucia county has a spanish ballad. we settled in 2010. we brought the lawsuit in 2008 and settled in 2010. the ballots are in spanish the notes are in spanish. there spanish-language assistance, spanish-speaking

poll workers. the community can easily understand their vote now in the voting rights act is applying and protected. the >> there is a vote, an election in august and people will be voting for -- >> the congressional primaries. >> how do you intend to monitor this? >> we generally work with the supervisor of elections. we have a great relationship. we have a community leader particularly from the volcua county and amy with the supervisors of elections to ensure compliance and ensure that latinos have full access. maureen russo, are you now working with other voters? are you getting word out about what happened to you? >> through coming on shows, i

have done it. i don't really know how to do it. i would like to encourage everybody to return their papers and prove they are a u.s. citizen like i have. hopefully, in 30 days, i will get a letter saying that everything is good to go. >> i want to end the discussion with congress member ted deutch on a slightly different issue. it is the issue of citizens united. last december, you joined with vermont senator bernie sanders to introduce the occupied a constitutional amendment to overturn the citizens united campaign finance decision. it's down for a outlying corporate cash undermining the public interest in our elections and democracy. can you talk about this effort? >> sure. and these issues are absolutely related.

these voter repression laws around the country have been shown they are funded by and supported by alex. the problem and our political system today is a special interest corporations have more and more influence and push the interests of typical americans to the margins. this occupied amendment would overturn citizens united. it would make clear the corporations are not people, the affairs of the constitution never intended to give constitutional rights to corporations, ones that we joy and -- in joy and tears. it is clear that for-profit corporations cannot use their resources to influence the outcome of an election. we need to get the money out of the political system and return democracy to the people. we will see changes then not just in the way campaigns are run, but the debate and the

issues we take out. that is why we continue to work hard at it. occupiedamendment.org is where people can learn more. >> how do you pushed it forward? >> at times like this, this is the only thing we can do now that the supreme court has acted the way they did in the citizens united case. there are efforts around the country, and efforts are under in anchorage others to get involved. everyone should ask their elected officials and any candidate they talk to with a they support an effort to overturn citizens united and give the power of our democracy back to the people. that is what is at stake. there are many of my colleagues have taken a pledge.

i think is appropriate we ask all candidates, including people in office are ready, to commit to stand up for the american people. >> congress member ted deutch, thank you for being with us. maureen russo, perched on the florida ralston told she would not be purged in a phone call. diana sen, lead counsel for latino justice. this is "democracy now!," democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. as we move on now to talk about the issue of same-sex marriage. in a groundbreaking ruling on thursday, the first circuit court of appeals struck down part of the defense of marriage act known as doma. in a unanimous decision, the appeals court ruled the federal coverage does not have the authority to deny benefits to same-sex couples in states such as massachusetts where same-sex couples can legally marry. delmont, which was signed into law by president clinton in 1996, prevents same-sex married

couples from filing joint federal tax returns. it also prevents a same-sex spouse from collecting social security survivor benefits and prevent the wrong place from sharing health-insurance and other benefits with a same-sex spouse. the massachusetts attorney general martha coakley rock and the court's ruling. >> is unconstitutional for the federal government >> it does harm to massachusetts and found is that massachusetts every day. and affirming the decision to strike down the defense of marriage act, the first circuit emphasized doma is a law that both discriminates against the historically disadvantaged group and also interest in an area where state regulations [unintelligible] likelysday's ruling will be appealed and be brought before the supreme court. notably, to members of the three

judge panel are republican appointees. thursday, press secretary jay carney responded to the court ruling. >> the president has concluded that section 3 of doma is unconstitutional, so has his attorney general. for that reason, the administration will no longer defend equal protection challenges against it in the courts. that is the position the president has held for some time now and has been enforced by the department of justice. with regards to this ruling, which the doj was an active participant in, i would refer you to the justice department rid but there is no question this is in concert with the president's views. >> for more we're joined by marc solomon. welcome. talk about the significance of this ruling.

>> it is significant that the three judge panel unanimously ruled as attorney general coakley of massachusetts said, there are no first-class and second-class marriages and the role of -- it is really up to the state to determine who is married and the federal government needs to respect those marriages that take place in the state. >> what happens next? >> it will be appealed. we're confident the supreme court will rule there is no gay exception when it comes to the way the government treats gay marriage brega >> where does the obama administration stand? wouldn't they have to defend this decision? >> the obama administration says the law is unconstitutional and they will not defend it. the house of representatives has taken on the defense of this

truly indefensible law. they will represent the u.s. government under this appeal. >> the release comes shortly after north carolina passed a ban on same-sex marriage. where is same-sex marriage stand in the different states? >> there is a mix. we have marriage equality in six states, six states recognize marriages. two additional states passed marriage laws. maryland and washington state passed same-sex marriage laws. there will be votes on those laws this november. maine is going to the ballots. what we know is we have solid majorities nationwide -- solid majority support nationwide. >> i want to go back to thursday's white house news briefing, news conference.

a reporter pressed jay carney on the obama administration's stance on doma. >> but the question is whether you would take your current somewhat [unintelligible] if you not defend it and turn around and actively argue for it it to overturn the law. >> in the first circuit, consistent with the position the president or the attorney general have articulated, which is they did not leave section 3 of dome is constitutional. i cannot predict what the next steps will be in handling cases of this nature. i would refer you to the department of justice. but i would not necessarily call that passive. >> marc solomon, your response? what i think the administration is doing the absolute right thing by saying it is unconstitutional. i think it is a shame, and this is a majority ruling, two of the

three judges were republican appointees, a shame the house of representatives looks like it is going to appeal this decision to the u.s. supreme court. >> republican presidential candidate mitt romney responded to president obama's recent endorsement of same-sex marriage. >> states are able to make decisions with regard to domestic partnership benefits such as hospital visitation rights, benefits and so forth of various kinds can be determined state-by-state. my view is marriage itself is a relationship between a man and woman, and that is my own preference. i know other people have different views. this is a very tender and sensitive topic. i have the same view i have had since -- well, since running for office. >> that is mitt romney. >> i think it is a shame that gov. romney cannot recognize that a committed and loving and

lesbian couples who have been married in his home state of massachusetts for eight years do not deserve the freedom to get married. and he is not recognizing it is only been a good thing for massachusetts and other states where gay couples can marry, and no one has been harmed at all. >> some lgbtq activists have criticized the movement's focus on same-sex marriage, saying it has sidelined issues like economic and racial justice. this is transgender activist kalil cohen on "democracy now!" in february after an appeals court struck down california's same-sex marriage ban, proposition 8. >> i have been active in the movement to establish same-sex marriage as a trans activist with a group in l.a. that is advocating for marriage, but i think my biggest concern is how much resources in the lgbtq movement have been funneled to

marriage equality alone and away from basic survival that a lot lgbtq people still face like criminal-justice reform and housing. these are issues that have taken a backseat to marriage equality. that has harmed the must all vulnerable members of our community. marriage equality is helping people already doing ok, mostly affluent, white gay lesbian folks. >> that was transgender activist kalil cohen. >> i would not dispute the idea that marriage is helping only the affluent. marriage is important to gay and lesbian couples across the economic and racial spheres. it is something that i have seen capture the imagination and the passion of the community and with nothing else has. it really is a matter of being respected by the government, being treated equal by our government across the board. i also think we do not need to

pit one cause, one matter of the quality against another. i think we need to be working together to secure equal across the board for gay and lesbian americans. >> thank you, marc solomon, national campaign director of freedom to marry, one of the leading campaigns to overturn doma that was passed under president clinton in 1996. we will be back in a moment. ♪ [music break] ♪ [music break]

>> this is "democracy now!," democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. the labor department has just announced the u.s. economy gained only 69,000 jobs in may in the unemployment rate rose to 8.2%. we end today's show with part two of my conversation with the academy award winning director charles ferguson did he first examined the network of academic, financial, and political players who contributed to the nation's financial crisis. in his documentary, "inside job," and now has a new book called "predator nation" based on newly released court filings that reveal how major players contributed to the financial crisis but i began by asking charles ferguson about a recent comment of mitt romney. >> president obama is an old

school liberal whose first instinct is to seek free enterprise as a villain and government as a hero america can count on president obama to rescue the economy continued deficit, and help create jobs. but instead, he bailed out [unintelligible] he gave billions of dollars to his friends and added almost as much debt to this country is the prior presidents combined. a consequence is we are enduring the most tepid recovery in modern history. >> let's follow that up with the interview he did was allow that o'brien and when he talked about not being concerned about the poorest americans. >> i'm in this race because i care about americans. i'm not concerned about the very poor. we have a safety net there. >> you to said, i am not concerned about the very poor because they have a safety net. i think many poor americans are struggling would say that sounds

odd. can you explain? >> finish the sentence. i said i'm not concerned about the very poor because it as a safety net, but if it is in need of repair, i will fix it. there's no question, it is not good being poor. we have a safety net to help those who are poor. my campaign is focused on middle-income americans. you can choose where to focus. you can focus on the rich, that is not my focus. you can focus on the very poor. that is not my focus. >> charles ferguson, your response? >> mr. romney is doing a good job of focusing on the rich, including himself. he has a network of almost $300 million. unfortunately, the best way in the long run to help the poor in

the united states is to give them fairness and opportunity. that is not something mr. romney's policies or the direction of the country have been giving us recently. his comments about the adequacy of america safety net also seems highly questionable. in fact, in this morning's "new york times," there's an article about the imminent cessation of long-term unemployment benefits for a very large number of americans who have been unemployed, in some cases, up to four years. i fear a romney administration would not bring us a solution to america's economic problems. >> mitt romney's advisers, he referred to them earlier. for example, larry summers and president obama. who does mitt romney turn to? also, talked about the fact is

running for president not as former governor of massachusetts, but as the former head of the private equity firm bain, that is what he is saying is or are his credentials for the job. >> yes, both disturbing. glenn hubbard is one of his economic advisers. hubbard not only has the major conflict of interest detail in the film and in the book, but he also -- when he was head of the council of economic advisers of the torch to the bush administration, he was one of the principal designers of the bush tax cuts, half of whose benefits went to the upper 1% of the population. i do not think mr. romney's toys of economic advisers indicates his concern for the middle class, nor the poor.

the private equity industry in general, including bain capital, is an industry that is largely unregulated. although in some cases, private equity transactions have had benefits for companies, for the most part, private equity is an extremely efficient machine for making lots of money for private equity executives. in some cases, at the direct expense of the companies themselves or the government. one thing that is not widely discussed about the private equity industry is that it frequently depends on hidden subsidies from the government'. for example, for-profit largely unregulated for-profit universities depend extremely heavily on subsidized student loans. there have been very widespread abuses of or by private

universities that have been owned by private equity firms, including goldman sachs. >> i want to go to a clip, charles ferguson, of your academy award winning film "inside job." it includes a top lobbyist for the financial roundtable. >> in the u.s., the banks are now bigger, more powerful, and more concentrated than ever before. >> there are fewer competitors. jpmorgan is even bigger today. >> before jpmorgan took over bear stearns and bank of america took over countrywide and merrill lynch, with wells fargo took over wachovia. >> after the crisis, including the financial roundtable, worked harder than ever to fight reform. the financial sector employs

3000 lobbyists, more than five for each member of congress. >> do you think the financial services industry has political ins floods and the u.s.? >> no, i think every person in the country is represented in washington. >> you think all segments of american society have equal and fair access to the system? >> you can walk into any hearing room you would like, yes. >> one to walk into any hearing room, but one cannot necessarily write the checks that your group or industry engages in. >> between 1998-2008, the financial industry spent over $5 billion on lobbying and campaign contributions. since the crisis, they are spending even more money. >> that was matt damon, the actor, narrating the academy award winning film "inside job."

charles ferguson directed that film and not to write "creditor nation -- "predator nation." take the lessons we learn from scott talbott to what we see today for example with jamie dimon and the $3 billion loss at jpmorgan chase. who has access and he does not? his lobbying, for example, jpmorgan chase and jamie dimon against the volcker rule and what this all means. is it strong enough? >> the fierce lobbying about the implementation of the volcker rule is yet another example of this phenomenon, the banking industry have spent enormous sums of money to push back against the strong implementation of the volcker rule and other aspects of even the relatively weak regulation

embodied in the dodd-frank legislation. jamie dimon repeatedly has said he does not think such regulation is required. indeed, one of the most astounding things about jpmorgan past results loss is that regulation is still sufficiently weak that we do not know what that trade actually is. we do not know the details of that transaction because they do not have to be publicly disclosed. it has been said by people who apparently do know something about the transaction that if the situation in europe worsens, the losses could extend upwards of $5 billion. and this is a loss that occurred at a relatively forgiving economic environment, at least in the united states, and in a bank that is why the regarded, probably correctly regarded, as the best run bank in the u.s. it does not give one a great deal security about what would

happen if we have another financial crisis and what could happen in other less well-run, less financially strong banks. >> you talk about the crisis in your book about being not just republican affair or democrat affair, but bipartisan affair. talk about the role of democrats and all of this. >> the role of democrats i would say has been at least as great as the role of republicans. the most important deregulatory legislation was actually passed in the clinton administration. was championed by robert rubin, who was secretary of the treasury and former ceo of goldman sachs, then also larry summers, who is first a pretty treasury secretary and then treasury secretary. first there was the repeal of glass-steagall, the law that separated investment from banking, and then in 2000 -- >> and that was under clinton.

>> yes. and then in 2000, also in the clinton administration, the commodities future modernization act that actually banned regulation of all so- called over-the-counter derivatives, including a credit default swaps and many other instruments there were the heart of the 2008 crisis. to his credit, president clinton has publicly stated he regrets having passed that law. but it was definitely championed by major fractions of the democratic party and policy leadership. of course, in the obama administration, we've seen very little reform and no criminal prosecutions. in the appointment of a very large number of wall street executives to senior positions in the government, including some people who were directly responsible for causing significant portions of the crisis. >> you also talk about how the once revered figures alan greenspan and larry summers have simply become courtiers of -- to

the elite. >> unfortunately, i think that is an apt description. alan greenspan was a private economist before he went into government but he had even taken money in the 1980's for lobbying on behalf of savings and loan executives who were later sent to prison, including charles keating. larry summers was first an academic and actually did not start working for the financial sector until after he left government for the first time. he was president of harder and then subsequently a professor at harvard. he consistently has favored the financial sector interest in all ways and now is made tens of minutes of dollars by this point from the financial sector. >> the issue of regulatory capture -- to talk about more regulation. what about the revolving door between business and regulators?

>> a very important problem. difficult to address, but not impossible. i think one very important measure that would be very beneficial would be raising the salaries dramatically of senior regulators and senior civil service personnel responsible for economic policy. in some other nations, senior regulators are very well paid, hundreds of thousands and in some cases, over $1 million a year. if that is the case, their temptation to favor banks, to go to work for banks is much reduced. i think the increased pay for the public sector should be accompanied by much stricter restrictions on what people can do after they leave government. of course, people should be able to work in the private sector, but a five or 10 year ban on

lobbying, for example, i think would be beneficial. >> charles ferguson, director of the award winning documentary "inside job." his new book is called "predator nation." you can go to democracynow.org to hear part one of the interview. tune in next wednesday for our interview with economist joseph stiglitz and our coverage of the recall election of wisconsin gov. scott walker as he competes for the governorship with milwaukee mayor. we will also be speaking next week with congressmember john lewis. we will be covering the verdict in the mubarak trial in egypt. [captioning made possible by democracy now!] democracy now! is looking for feedback from people who appreciate the closed captioning. e-mail your comments to outreach@democracynow.org or mail them to democracy now! p.o. box 693 new york, new york 10013. new york, new york 10013.