and people have been calling for have been demonstrating for since the supreme council of the armed forces took power from mubarak last february because to them they say that the ruling generals have been actually representing the old regime something they've been fighting against and something actually the revolution has been designed to gets rid of but already today we have many signs indicating that the islamists in this new poll and the muslim brotherhood as well as some of business second do that. they see a vote actually go in most large it's a cooperate with scoff and that's why many people who have been able to speak to here in prague road say they feel a little bit strange. parties worry if an ocean is tracking the latest developments in cairo you can check out her updates on our his twitter feed as well as her personal account the latest on egypt's first parliamentary second and the growing frustrations in the region one of her latest tweets he writes demonstrators are calling for elections for president in two months instead of waiting till june you

can find all the updates online r t underscore com. turning now to libya at least four people are dead more than a dozen injured after fighting breaks out in the former khadafi stronghold of bani walid fighters still loyal to the deposed leader clash with militia what follows is a warning from the leader of the libya's national transitional council that there's a real threat of civil war flaring up again protests in the city of benghazi forced the resignation of his deputy earlier this past weekend in a rage of libyans took to the streets of the city that had been the center of opposition against the gadhafi regime demonstrators are now accusing the m.t.c. of corruption the lack of reform in favor and former government loyalists. president of the arab lawyers association tells r.t. that libya could be on the edge of a return to chaos. that is the risk for two reasons the reason number one is that the still in the hands of the that it's militias that is. the differences between

the two on a tribal basis and what have you and at the same time the ideas the political views of the people in conflict you have some people who want. to have more than ten percent seats and. while at the same time you have others who saying you shouldn't have percentages women should have equal rights but no special favors for them you have a situation where people who want to be on the constitution well you have the other the liberals who don't want to do that so you have a conflict on policies as well as the availability of. often calls for democratic change in the middle east but some say remains reluctant to recognize the right of self-determination palestinian president mahmoud abbas has been visiting moscow and talked with r.t. about the latest. bid for statehood the exclusive interview.

visit is the final stop on your european tour. waiting for a resolution to the statehood issue what do you expect from russia's leadership at this stage when the issue of palestinians legal rights is being decided according to international law. the russian federation as well as the soviet union before it

has been regarded as one of the key and principal hopes for the palestinian people since the nine hundred seventy s. when the late palestinian president yasser arafat visited moscow our nations have enjoyed good relations it's not only the result of the role that russia plays in the region but also due to the fact that russia was a great power a member of the united nations security council and a member of the quartet of middle east mediators this is why we focused so much on strengthening our relations and why we expect russia to play a positive role recently the quartet took a number of steps calling for negotiations without doubt. coordinate opposition with russia and several other countries to get an understanding of where palestine stands what it should do and what it shouldn't. this is why we visited the u.k. germany and have now come to russia we hope that the talks with israel currently underway in jordan will result in a positive outcome but if they fail we would need to have a list of further steps to be taken and it putting together the action list we want

to listen to the opinions of the countries i mentioned earlier and russia in particular. railway officials the negotiations are just a way to gain time they say the talking games will not bring about solutions or agreement which will make time for those who know how to use it. how to use it what stands behind that statement. means they want to preserve the status quo something we completely reject all illegal settlements all illegal buildings must be torn down and removed from palestinian territories perhaps the israelis have a different vision although in the past they have left their illegal settlements on the sinai peninsula and sharm el sheikh and returned back to their borders we have the same situation in lebanon believe some of the settlements there even with that they want to preserve the existing situation of the palestinian territories and

seek to convince the international community to accept that they want to make us accept this vision but we will never accept it. and then jimmy netanyahu said that he gave you a twenty one point proposal detailing the israeli position by doing so he refused to meet in ramallah despite his promise what is the document all about. i met him three times in september two thousand and ten the first time in washington on an invitation from president obama and the second time in sharm el sheikh and the third time we knew. it was on the twenty fifth of september at his house in jerusalem where we talked for four hours and discussed all the issues yet the talks ended with no positive results no discontinuation of the development of the occupied territories no changes to security policies the israeli way they intend to occupy the west bank and the heights for another forty years. this is colonial policy and colonialist logic this is not the logic of

a person interested in constructive talks and peaceful coexistence with his neighbors i don't refuse to meet but i need to have a good reason now i guess twenty one point proposal and what are these twenty one points are they just some headlines or indeed a list of twenty one issues that need to be addressed by our peoples. as of today we only need to discuss and solve two issues borders and security and why would we want to add more issues to the agenda did he think it was some sort of a secret but it's no news and it's not of any practical use either but it is not appropriate for a prime minister to submit this way a document that simply enumerates some issues such as borders security the jewish state of cetera with no clear indication of what is actually expected of the other party. do you think current events in the arab world could strengthen your position in the peace talks and help the palestinian

issue internationally. still no clear position common to all arab countries yes there are a revolutionary changes taking place but it will take time to figure out what results they brought about the countries we want to work with in order to strengthen our position will need time to get back on their feet and build their states under the new conditions however the general arab stance on the palestinian issue has not changed and the people who lead these revolutions are the same people who supported the palestinians in their pursuit of in the end. and these people have not changed what has changed is their attitude towards their leaders and their governments but that is their internal matter and we don't get involved the arab stance on the palestinian issue has remained the same. mr president in your address to the un general assembly was very emotional it could

truly be called an historic event but as it turned out it still wasn't enough to convince nine members of the u.n. security council to grant the palestinian authority the status of full u.n. membership would it be possible to continue with the talks if you agreed to the status of a nonmember observer state. in the united nations security council we received eight votes but we need nine still may not upset everyone is pressured to vote against our membership today we refuse the idea of being a nonmember observer state so everything is possible one i'm not saying that it can't be everything is possible if you ask me about the official position of the palestinian state on this issue i'll give you the answer we seek full membership or we will apply for a second for a third time etc until we get our bid approved they would. think you very much for being with us to the every possible for excess in the

implementation of political reforms and creation of a palestinian state. is that so much as i can recall one of. the biggest and most expensive elections money can buy this is how many americans see what i call political action committees or super pacs. to. keep to. keep the.

spanish. up. world. science technology innovation all the rest of elements from around the shop we've got the few jerks covered.

one thirty am in moscow these iraqi headlines syria slams an arab league plan to solve the country's crisis that requires president assad to step down damascus said the initiative was interference in its internal affairs an attack on itself and. the e.u. adopts unprecedented sanctions against iran including a complete oil embargo a move targeting terrans controversial nuclear program russia calls the sanctions a mistake that undermines the diplomatic efforts to solve the crisis samia bardot

will make the iran change its policy. and gracious votes in favor of joining the debt stricken e.q. in a national referendum but low turnout and some violent protests preceding the vote show there are still divisions within the country. those are your headlines up next peter lavelle host cross-talk stay with us. please. continue. to. follow me and welcome to cross our computor look out the biggest and most expensive elections money can buy this is how many americans see what are called political action committees or super pacs are the super pacs good for democracy do they

really inform in voters and are elections now only about money. and you can. start. to cross talk political action committees i'm joined by seton motley in washington he is the president and editor in chief of less government also in washington we have greg coleman he is a government affairs lobbyist for public citizen and in los angeles we crossed a room he is the founding editor of the independent newspaper are gentlemen crosstalk rules and if that means you can jump in anytime you want and i really very much encourage a room in los angeles i go to you first and in researching this program i came across i thought it was a very interesting and if not funny statement everyone loves to hate super pacs one critic said that they were quote a new political animal that is ugly loud and anti-democratic would you agree or disagree with that statement. well it's certainly is fundamentally

anti-democratic sensually have extremely wealthy people who can come in corporations that can come in with no disclosure they can coordinate with campaigns spend huge amounts of money distorting the political process they can basically broadcast whatever propaganda they like and i would ever time and we live in an age the second gilded age in america where there's just enormous concentration of wealth and we know that there are billionaires running around whether it's someone like george soros or the koch brothers who have a vested interest and trying to game the political system and we have to see this also in the larger context of how money is used in politics in the united states or something like seventeen thousand registered lobbyists in washington d.c. the vast majority of them controlled by corporations or trade groups and they exist

essential. a influence the process to write laws and regulations so that money flows towards them and this is what citizens united and this super pacs are all about it's arrived at the point that we have the best democracy that money can buy ok craig what do you think about that in washington d.c. that's run as a pretty strong opinion but do you think about it. you know i've got to take that opinion even stronger super pacs are perhaps the most dangerous trend we've seen in the financing of american elections recently you know this. supreme court five justices on the supreme court opened an absolutely disastrous floodgate of unlimited and largely undisclosed money in american elections when they ruled just two years ago this is the anniversary by the way of the citizens united decision in which five justices ruled that corporations are to be treated as people under the u.s. constitution and therefore can make unlimited expenditures now that's bad enough

that we're having this flood of unlimited corporate money flowing into elections and it which is largely going undisclosed but then to make it even worse we've got this new phenomenon called super pacs that are directly and very closely aligned with each of the presidential candidates he's our candidate specific groups that are receiving unlimited corporate money and limited union money unlimited wealth from individuals specifically to support a candidate either romney gate bridge or bamma is setting up his own as a result we're going back to the pre watergate era in which the very wealthy get to buy these election if i go to seed and i have to point out to our viewers here is that i was a small boy during watergate and i can remember afterwards a lot of people say that at least the the positive outcome of this scandal called watergate was election campaigning reform and it is that all gone now with the with

the decision in two thousand and ten because it looks like we've just to see if you decades go ahead. unfortunately no it's not all glenn i'm sorry you guys are so in effect a cult of free speech. money is speech in our society money money is groceries in society you can argue that it's not but try leaving the grocery store with some groceries without money money is speech in this country and i'm sorry you guys are so obtusely offended by all this free speech going on the reason super pacs and this is because we still have stupid anti first amendment campaign finance laws on the books you want to complain about lobbyist lobbyist is one of the few jobs it's actually mention the comp constitution petition congress. grievances the problem is government is so incredibly huge that it requires so many lobbyists to try to hurt it and beat it back off people's particular industries if you want to work campaign

finance reform were do says size scope and sphere of influence of government and then won't be any needed to bribe all these politicians ok what do you think about that i mean. if it's a free speech issue here i mean but it gets down to you can those that have free speech doesn't have the money if you have money you can have free speech well of course this is based on the absurd notion that corporations are people and as justice stevens. is sure that this is you know in a way in a way you know who are already seen as our asian a lot away allow them to run for office why don't we allow them to vote you know i think i would be more on this why don't we have president exxon mobil i mean i think a good example of this is just to please our and it is just a bigger terms of the corrupting influence of money in our society is that over the last few years julie the energy industry and its allies have been pouring about

three to four billion dollars a year i was working with kids to like this story there's a. change. they're basically interested in. subtly trying to distort what is. proven science that the climate is shifting now. species that are because you know their habitat unless you do you remember the climate unless you believe. that the planet itself is this fraud where spring is coming earlier where ecosystems are are shifting you want your stories only like you. said if you don't. cry going to graduate. craig it's all that. money let's talk about the money issue right let's talk about the money issue as opposed to the policy you know you talk about i mean is money if you want to see it. ever says watergate ever since watergate we recognize that when

you have any individual or corporation or any entity that can throw in too much money to a candidate you can potentially corrupt that candidate so now that we have and so with the watergate era we set up it was amazing we're going to hear romney's was going to how much money can go into politics we've lost those reasonable limits and now can and that all groups corporations anyone can throw in five million ten million to support a presidential candidate specifically that candidate and that candidate is going to know who who feathered his or her bed to get elected president that is a very very easy to use a little upset that the free market people can now spend as much as the unions always could these were ok seating can i ask you a question here i mean it's well known it's common knowledge that most of these super pacs that are supporting candidates as was just pointed out their former

staffers from the candidate there's no sure i nice chinese wall there now but i mean that's what they're supposed to be so i don't care if. it's an i'm constitute . no wall it's an unconstitutional wall here telling people how they can spend their money. i mean isn't. that somehow corporations are people ok ok obvious here's me who forms corporations people do they don't lose their rights because they form a business or form of people who drive cars so what i mean is are just going to do things correctly or you're going to use more graduations are and i really want to and i is why down gentlemen craig if i can go to you again i'd like to go go go back to these things i mean super pacs ok they have a lot of money we've all agreed to that ok but it's also a way to deny it's an adult deniability you know we have the candidate saying well this this ad ran and well i have nothing to do with it i didn't have any involvement in it but of course it's that candidates former staffers that are going to knowing there's a force to my law to say that i'm asking craig. that that's exactly that's exactly

right what we're seeing going on in the republican primaries where the republican candidates are criticizing their own super pacs for doing these negative and false ads and it really is just a whole bunch of bluster these super pacs are doing exactly what the candidates want to do they pretend that they don't even see the ads that the super pacs are running yet every time one of these presidential candidates gives a speech they're echoing exactly what the super pacs are saying the super pacs are are the dirty mechanisms they're the ones that can do all the dirty work for the presidential candidates coming up with the lies slanders or just negative campaign ads well the candidates themselves try to distance themselves in arm's length and say i criticize what that super pac did but you know this is the message so it's really all bluster i mean all these presidential candidates therefore. are

exceedingly beneficial ok seated why they forced. into a lot of those stupid law says that they can't coordinate. with the super pac and now you're criticizing them for a hearing to the stupid law that you're insisting upon but they are coordinating that's our coordination rules our coordination be aware that you're going to you're stupid. for one second for not coordinating former staffers for a candidate or not a problem with them coordinating with your post had a problem coordinating i don't have a problem with them coordinating this is free speech. the important point is that this keeps getting back to the issue of free speech and many constitutional scholars i'm going to as i do this actually the five four majority decision swept aside more than a century of precedent that this was a radical illegal. erin that was overturning all sorts of

precedent in terms of. the supreme court so there's such a great. scholar and i want to buy your position there some corporation well how. cares we'll leave and we're going to show you here is a bad precedent. all right general i'm going to jump in here we're going to make sure we're going to show you a short duration role we'll keep the discussion going to continue our discussion on super pacs state parties. to.

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and you can. still. want to. come back to cross talk about your little jumanji we're discussing whether super pacs are good for democracy. and you can just start. ok you can and i to ask you do these super pacs and these really dreadful ads are they put on television or do they actually

inform of people is there any information valuable information there to make decisions. sure sure and i'm like everybody else on this panel i actually trust the american people to discern and delineate what's useful and what's not and make a rational and intelligent decision these people seem to think that the american people are sheep and eighty it's and can't figure out what's true and what's not in these ads well i mean if you're crowding out the public sphere and you're only getting certain messages it's hard to make a decision greg you want to jump in there go ahead excuse me the internet is a cornucopia you can get whatever you want or need to tell you internet these ads are not swaying people well i mean it seems you would probably agree with me that then if it isn't the case then why are they spending so much money on it go ahead craig jump in more because it's part of the grass or a very negative ads these are very negative ads these are this is not useful information these are very you know you'd better go mitt romney mitt romney who had previously supported abortion rights reg and gingrich for supporting abortion

rights which gingrich doesn't i mean it's misinformation that it's coming out here and negative advertising this is not constructive not only turns off floaters towards the election but it also increases the cost for buying campaign ads for the candidates on the parties who have serious messages to offer no this is drowning out yet again a real battle of the serious message the d.n.c. is full of. excuse me i had a question when it went a.b.c. long. when n.b.c. lies in their reporting they're not they're not held to this accountability standard that you're applying to private citizens why is that. i mean he is they are their case they have no laws it's practice journalism and i don't no no no no look at here so here's the thing about the whole citizens united and super pacs we have to see this in the historical context the.