washington referred to as the man who bought washington he brought government officials in order to gain political support for his clients in two thousand and six he was convicted of ripping off his clients jack abramoff served three and a half years in prison guilty of conspiracy fraud and tax evasion mr abrams thank you very much for coming since your release from jail you've been very vocal about corruption in washington i read your book and i got a sense of your frustration about the fact that while you were sent to jail people involved in the same corrupt practices are sitting pretty in their offices on capitol help him of his frustrated that their people didn't go to jail or prison and prison is not fun and i wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy but i guess what i'm frustrated about is that when they had my hearings and trials and when i was sent off there was a big exclamation and celebration here that they cleaned up washington but in fact

they didn't clean up washington and so when i came out after rethinking my life and what i was involved in decided that they want to clean up washington that i would help them figure out exactly how to do it during that senate hearing when you were publicly bashed by the senate is what were you thinking what were your thoughts as you faced the distinguished panel well i probably was thinking they were a little less distinguished than others were thinking i was reminded can simulate by every word out of there mel they were among the many who participated in some of the corruption that they were accusing me of when one of the senators a senator campbell was accusing me of corruption and me wrecking the democratic system i was thinking back to the breakfast i had with him a couple years before where i handed him checks from my clients as contributions and he said that they would never have a problem with his committee so i was thinking that basically about each of the. i

didn't know a lot of them personally because i had people working for me had a staff of about forty lobbyists and some of them knew the people who work for me but. i found the whole thing to be hypocritical it was a kangaroo court and it was a show people say you were a tory it seemed your ability to buy members of congress how did you do that i don't think i was necessarily except on the margins much different than most of what goes on here but what happens here and what's on portion in which what i did in terms of pushing over the lines even of this activity is lobbyists and people want something from congress raise money for congressmen give money to congressmen in terms of political contributions by meals for them take them golfing take them on trips take them to sporting events and i probably did more of it than most did and i pushed over certain lines that are in the sand and broke the law but it's something that goes on far too often in washington you want to set and i found it

very very interesting that that once you just a moment you offered a job to a congressional staffer you own them right there was no greater control that people could have over congressional offices than to have the head of that office know that they're going to come in a few months to come work for a lobbying firm from that minute on those people are focused on that lobbying from their clients and it's not just me i saw it all over tell me it's not something i bet it it's something i noticed and something that i propose now to get rid of by banning people who work on capitol hill or are members of congress from ever joining the lobbying industry or the employments industry in america what did your clients want by investing in politics by investing in you well mostly my clients want to the federal government not to. get all over their back and tax them and their businesses most the lobbying is deep that's keeping the government from doing things to industries and to companies and likely going to help them avoid to the base activated i don't want. i got presented in

a bunch of indian tribes and the way i got into it the first representation i had with the tribes was to stop the federal government from putting a thirty percent tax over the gross revenues of their gambling industry and what was interesting about your case it was not just politicians who cheated but also you cheated your clients namely those indian tribes with gambling interests who paid them aliens and what i thought was what i did was where we're about to pled guilty to was some of the efforts that we did for the clients in their states worst to stop their competition from taking away their markets they would crush their competition yes we would attack their competition and we would do everything we could to keep them from invading the market of our client and that's normal in america fortunately for better or for worse that's not something we we made up we're going to have any regrets about doing that well at the end of the day i regret using the political process as a weapon against competitors because at the end of the day i don't think the government should be used like that i didn't have a problem with it then and i shouldn't even if we're talking about millions of

dollars in contributions it's still peanuts for any big corporation it's a tiny fraction of what they make did you get a sense of how powerless average americans are when the interest so big guys like that are at stake on capitol hill well americans have a very tough time competing with these special interests special interests come in with a lot of money and you're right it's miniscule amounts of money compared to what they could do and some of them do a lot of money but it's still a small amount the problems the average citizen is not engaged politically and when they're able to bring in money and influence members of congress to vote on things that are not good for the country and not good for the general interest because somebody with a special interest is pushing on it that's where the problem starts so what i propose in my book in the effort that i've been engaged in since i've got prism is a way to separate money out of politics here and basically to say. but if you're

a lobbyist or you're somebody who's trying to get something from the government here you may not give a dollar politically of any kind and that's one of the four things that i propose to clean up the system i think is very important because the end of the day political contributions that if i give you something if you're a congressman and i give you a contribution and i want something from you that contribution may not be cold a bribe but it is a broad at the end of the day how many members of congress are involved in corruption like that bribery like that well i mean ultimately every member of congress who's taking a check a contribution from a lobbyist or from a company or from a union or anyone who needs or get something from washington whether it's conscious or not they're involved in it alternately you can't accept something from somebody without unless you're at it all do well yes absolutely they all do and what i'm saying is you can't as a human being if somebody gives you something you're going to feel gratitude and even if you don't do with that person once right there and you say look you can't

buy my vote for two thousand dollars and most of them say that of course but the issue is if you do something nice for me in my heart i'm going to have to fuel a little bit better about you and what i'm saying is that is the moment of the problem if you're a public servant with all the crimes that you committed there's still a sense that you were used as a poster boy a kind of a scapegoat for the corrupt system that is very much alive and kicking i want to ask you about the supreme court decision from almost two years ago that allows on limited campaign contributions a lobbyist must be really happy about that decision some are some are and i think the decision was for the most part very good the decision basically said that people shouldn't have the right to get money constricted i don't have a problem with that what i have a problem with his people who want something back giving money even a dollar that's the difference with with me now corporations the problem with corporations the ladies you are contradicting yourself you were just talking about how eighty. contribution can be seen as bribery and now you're saying no being able

to funnel as much money as you want these perfectly fine in today's politics no i don't think so i think people should have the right to get big i've been fairly consistent i mean not to expect anything in return one on one and why should you expect something in return there are a lot of people who give money in this country by the way because they like the ideology of the candidate they like the candidate themselves they're not going in there and asking for a grant or a tax break or or a contract most people don't do that but it's still contradicts what you were saying a few moments ago and that is with any form of contribution especially a big contribution an elected official finds themselves in a situation when they told their benefactors if somebody is worth a trillion dollars they live in some form in kansas and they never have any contact with any congressman ever and they see some congressman they love they want to give him a million dollars because they think they're fantastic and they never ask for a thing from that person i personally think that's all right they have been very hard to track down you ask possibly i've talked i've talked to law enforcement

about this about my ideas and once the laws are set in place i think that they are capable of figuring it out that decision only created a further complication in my view in the sense that it brought corporations them as a possible donor to political efforts and again don't you think it effectively legalize this corruption and watched why i think corruption is legal in washington right now thousands of people took to the streets across america to say no to jack paper amounts to saying no to corrupt politics in washington do you think there is a chance that action like that that awareness like that can change anything i think the occupy wall street movement had behind it some good in saying the problem is that they didn't organize themselves like the tea party movement did which was political tea party movement had a dramatic impact on the last election and probably will still in this election and i've spoken to the occupy people quite a lot and told them. that until they get themselves organized politically they're

not going to be meaningful because in america street protests don't really mean people don't like street protests in america first of all the destructive there's vandalising there's unsanitary things that go on and most americas the repelled by that what most americans will respect is political activism an organization on the left or on the right now i think that there is anger out there saying we don't have a money to hire a lot of. well but it might not be a bad thing but. you know american people don't need lobby is they need to organize themselves i think that in america getting it to first of all class and b. i think is very dangerous we've seen that every great. tele tarion movement in certainly in the twentieth century started with class and instead of class and be able to focus themselves not on those who succeed but those who choose to succeed in the sense of using the government and using the state to make their lives easier to make more money and there are plenty of those that get it like like i did like i

help my clients do and like every lobbyist helps their clients do unfortunately had it not being for the jail time would you have been just as we panting as you are now if i hadn't had the fall if i hadn't had been destroyed i would love to sit here and tell you i would have all my own come to how bad this was and you know i should have been doing and i should have been involved in that kind of lobbying but i'm not going to lie to you i would never thought that i thought i was doing the right thing that's the sad part of it all for me so as i look back i would have stopped i would have still been doing it instead of sitting here with you i'd be sitting on capitol hill negotiating something for one of my clients. took my getting killed for me to come to the realisation that i should have been there what do you plan to do. in the process of. possibly one amp with a t.v. show thank you.

leap. from. what comes. out. is he.

says. other stories that shape the week tensions around tehran's nuclear program stirred further by e.u. plans to impose embargo on iranian oil and the us building its warship presence in the region. curry show votes in favor of joining the e.u. despite the issue previously sparking protests and violent clashes this as a bloc itself continues to be shaken by anti stirring rallies with people in romania now rising up. their government. tensions around iran's nuclear program stirred further by e.u.

plans to impose it on cargo water rising oil and the us building its warship presence in the region. the power of the internet in action a massive online backlash over u.s. plans to expand web censorship we do this is a spreadsheet of pentagon type privacy laws. and sports news next with kate stay with us here on r.t. . and i welcome to the sports and here's what's coming up. easy does it rafael nadal and roger federer coasting to the quarter finals of the strain open. while different strokes kim clijsters comes back from the brink while carline defines a second set fightback to reach the last eight. and showtime east meets west once again in the annual all star extravaganza in front of

a sellout arena in latvia in capital. to test a tennis and second seed rough on the doll has beaten fellow spaniard for the theone i live in straight sets to book a place in the quarterfinals of the australian open the two thousand and nine champion was broken only ones out east to a six four six four six two victory against his misfiring davis cup team mates like their fifty two unforced errors. felt little remorse often knocking out these off. for a number of days one of my best friends and. that's the game that's a sport and you understand. again. in this. they would i want to win everybody wants them to have. one to finish the match with the with a better result that the motions i simulate you know it's happens very often nothing that. and up next when a doll is big serving commercial burger king produced twenty eight aces in his

brewing and ill tempered for settling disputes they can all migrate the check was booed off to the match as the seventy refused to shake hands with his opponent that it apparently took offense after a micro returned a ball entity's head during the fourth set and wouldn't accept and we apologise. who is afraid to danny's knows the record is pretty big and you always have a some space to put the ball in the snow even if you if you stand each other like to your four meters close to the guy just try to headed straight straight to your face you know i was just able to do something someone down just had mean the arm and and there to do you know i actually did you know the way i would turn is use well elsewhere there was a bit of heartbreak for the local crowd as home favorites and i make this probably be i want to go to a trademark backhand winner clinch the second set for the swiss drew the applause

of white america. sounds better than swiftly served out the third as the wild number three reached his thirty first consecutive quarter final slam events. and waiting for federer in the last eighty one martina potro after the argentinian rolled past it called schreiber of germany. while women's defending champion kim clijsters played to an ankle injury and slaved for much points to stun the french open champion li na the belgian contemplated retiring after landing quickly at three zero that was to take six to meet in the second is that tie break but jubilant crisis point back to take the thirty six ball. last moment some point you can use i could just try to do another to mitigate shouldn't. sink in or you know if i could get through those first twenty minutes and if our. you know i

think the pain would go away a little bit and then maybe would you journal and i could just through it and. have this that i didn't give up. the belgian will next face top seed caroline wozniacki who held up a second that fight back by serbia's yelena yankovic's the former while number one committing her fiftieth unforced error to hand wozniacki six seven five victory the dane went out in the semifinals last year to step away from defending her ranking points while the one spot. in form by the russian victoria azarenka hit a forehand when i brushed aside yvetot ashes out of the czech republic sixty six to the number three seed enjoy it so well that blistering victory. and waiting in the quarter finals is number eight seed agnieszka advance to the pole needed less than an hour to overpower germany's you six one six one twenty two year old running in confidence after injuring its three set battle in her opening match.

despite resting from man but i could olenka and not kissed each tesco still trans to massive underdogs minsk by an impressive fifty point margin here in moscow to maintain the group the lead in the international d.t.b. tournament while the home side got off to a rather slow start as dwayne hawkins poured into travels all the bats to get the better machine visitors and early eight for lead the american would eventually top score with nineteen points but just got themselves into the driver's seat by the end of the opening course after and never looked back sasha can lead to that charge with a team high eighteen points and some spectacular slam dunks six more players finished top of the detail who eventually won it one hundred ten to sixty moscow club chalking up their ninth win in ten games since the start of the regular season and later admitted it's more of a training session than a match for this side of. the world but it will warrant well our opponents on

squad at the same level as the other teams in the lead what about all it's due any team can beat another team attorney given time but if you don't give your all so i'm happy with the way i played. and over in the n.b.a. the grizzlies won their sixth straight game with a one hundred twenty eight to ninety five home way of the struggling kings late in the first quarter mike conley signed his seventh basket from seven shots but memphis thirty four twenty one out of sacramento climbed back to within eight points in the second. projects took just seconds to go but then the home side pulled away after the break marc gasol and rudy gay for a stylish dunk packed with repeated the feat a perfect alue for memphis seventy eight sixty ahead and the final quarter was all about gasol as the forces won by thirty eight points at their players collecting twenty points. finally to ice hockey and thousands of fans flooded to the latvian

capital of riga on saturday to watch the east remain unbeaten against the west in the fourth k h l all star extravaganza robert fatton and reports. let in the hockey fans for note for the stars on so it was their turn to meet the biggest jones europe strongest league has stalled for at the cato all star game twenty twelve with one of the greatest russian players of all time sergei further of living that because the eastern conference and the pride of lebanon hockey. captioning the best from the west that is why for the first time in the history of the event the arena that with thousands betrayers world passionately behind one side the west. and also mention go from place to believe in the so-called super skills show which is a traditional warm up ahead of the all star games with another local idol number reduced nicholas redlegs winning the fastest skater competition. after three more

contests the western conference two were still on. although their horns from the east managed to steal the show. and when. was dropped was like somebody designs of producing a record breaking one hundred eighty three kilometer and no heat in the car is shot contest and sergei further up edging out sunday is also arranged in the captain's deal which saw some extra hockey skills on display from the two legends i think will like it. i think. so i'm just like that i like that it was it was sort of very technical drills it was different it was new how the words were like it and it was it was good innovation meanwhile the most i get qantas shootouts left many if it's really possible in this world what's blooding address into the various sankoh is that i mean is it i don't know how does it look like the park was going

our way in the long side mccain back this way so i don't know if you know he's a magician. secret was that i just made a tiny hole in the park and pollution one through. my father told me the street has to be a video on no three previous occasions take a chill star game so the team from the east claimed victory over the peak of the west so this time around priest hope we were about to witness something more than just a friendly showcase but the real deal hockey day action started with no goals in the first ten minutes of the match proving the teams were not just having fun on ice just as they promised before the game we had a winning streak on so. i think. it might be up for grabs today as above the players on both sides i think are going to try a lot harder to do one of the sides like it when one of the belts. it was the west open schooling and those glory began to rule the teams to turn schooling

and taking the lead but if there are periods under way on level terms although off to the further fifteen schools who are in. to make it will eight the old was inevitable the team from the east remains unbidden at the cage also games fifteen eleven the final school i think it begins as a friendly. friendly game and in the eyes of these and then as soon as the somebody gets ahead a little bit more the other steam starts to run out and we do again we can't let it get away like that that they've just spent gradually becomes a little bit. more more competitive than it was at the beginning and still of long game nobody wants to get heard of course and must have a good time and enjoy themselves this time around was different from any i appear i think it was. twenty interesting combinations i think guys basically try to play

off and so experience. as you know with just a. couple any all-star games but like i said we had a streak of four awful goals one line didn't really really good job but. we got lucky and we got. quite advantage there next year because all stars will make it to the front of the u.s. monsoons at least through most in city all jevons. but for the known r.c. luck. and also. i have to.

technology innovations all the developments around russia we go into the future.

roundup of the week's top stories and headlines the arab league extending its observer mission in syria by a month is saudi arabia withdraws its monitors critical of the lack of progress in ending almost a year of violence. early results show votes in favor of joining the european union this as yet another member of the financially stricken group romania rising up against its government and high austerity measures. other stories that shape the week tension over iran's nuclear program reaching new highs is the new debates in oil embargo and the u.s. military presence in the region. and the power of the internet in action

a massive online backlash over u.s. plans to expand web censorship lead to the suspension of pending anti-piracy laws. what i am in moscow i met treasure bring you today's top stories and a look back at the week's news here on r t arab league officials say its team of monitors will continue its mission implementing a peace plan to end the crisis in syria this is saudi arabia decides to withdraw its contingency saying the syrian government isn't following through with agreements aimed at ending the bloodshed as r.t. sarfarosh reports there is a desperate need for professional mediators in the region conflict. crucially it was also expected to happen is that they're going to be bolstering this mission by increasing the numbers and also by providing trade.