How to Get Your Perk Into a Bill, by Former Lobbyist Jack Abramoff
Whether you’re a company, a union, or an individual, to get your bennie—your perk—into a bill, the first thing you need to do is find a bill that’s going to get signed by the president. Ninety-nine percent of what’s proposed in Congress doesn’t make it to the White House, so you’re looking for one of the few bills that’s going to make it all the way through the House, the Senate, the conference committees, and wind up on the president’s desk.We call that a moving train. If you’re a lobbyist pushing something like this, you want your moving train to be a 2,000-plus-page bill. You want to find a way to sneak your bennie into a teeny boxcar in the back that nobody’s going to notice. read more
Jack Abramoff, DC insider on "All in w/Chris Hayes" on Senate's Gun Legislation 4/11/13
Bestselling author and world's most notorious former lobbyist provides expert analysis of today's Senate read more
47 Minutes With Jack Abramoff
Can you explain the rules?” I ask Jack Abramoff outside the racquetball court at a Washington, D.C., YMCA. He flashes a big grin. “So here they are,” he says, “as I see them.” “The rules according to Jack!” clarifies Jason Hickox, a former employee and friend who is now Abramoff’s racquetball opponent most weekday mornings. Abramoff proceeds to explain who serves when, which lines the ball can and cannot cross, and so on. In his own life, he has a new perspective on the crossing of lines. After serving 43 months in prison for his role in one of the worst corruption scandals in political history, Abramoff has reinvented himself as a government reformer. read more
Observing Passover in Prison
Today marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday, Passover. It's a time to think about the story of Exodus, when Moses led the slaves out of Egypt to freedom. But what does it mean for people in prison? Host Michel Martin discusses the issue with law professor Aviva Orenstein, and Jack Abramoff, a former lobbyist and convict who observed Passover while in prison. read more