Yes Jack, You Are A BAD Man!

Jack Abramoff, the now-disgraced lobbyist behind a corruption scandal that ensnared several prominent lawmakers and Washington power brokers a few years ago, pleaded with a federal judge to reduce his sentence in a letter sent yesterday, apologizing for his "blundering" but saying, he is not a "bad man."
"I am not a bad man (although to read all the news articles one would think I was Osama Bin Laden), but I did many bad things," he wrote. "I lied to clients, even while working to get them the results they expected. I cheated my law firm and took advantage of public officials. And, while I gave millions of dollars to charities, I thought I could then skirt the rules in paying the right amount of money to the government in taxes."
"I have a lot to make up for and a lot of amends to make," he wrote. "If I ever can earn more than a mere living again, I will be paying back those I have harmed for the rest of my life. However, little is accomplished by delaying that day by my being jailed longer than is necessary." (Read; I need to get back to work screwing people over so I can make more money.)
Sorry Jack. You just don’t get it. All those things you mention DO MAKE YOU A VERY BAD MAN!
Not only should Abramoff stay in jail for the full 11 years (to bad it will only be 8 years) but also there is a very good treason case to be made against him and Treason carries the death penalty.

One of the truly great ills that our Country has is Lobbyist. Until a Constitutional amendment is passed that FORBIDS all types of lobbying. Our Country is no better than the “Third World” corruption centers that we always complain about.

"I come before you as a broken man," Abramoff said at his sentencing before U.S. District Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle. "I'm not the same man who happily and arrogantly engaged in a lifestyle of political and business corruption." He knew what he was doing! He knew he was tearing away the very fabric of our Government! Yet he still wanted leniency. This unmitigated Traitor has spent his time in prison cooperating with a book that portrays him much differently: as a victim of Washington politics. This is the “yes I tried to buy Politicians, but they really wanted to be bought” defense.

Defense attorney Abbe Lowell portrayed Abramoff as a conflicted man. Yes, he corrupted politicians with golf junkets, expensive meals and luxury seats at sporting events. But he also donated millions of dollars to charity, and his good deeds were catalogued in hundreds of letters from friends. However, as it turns out, many of those donations were made in the name of Politicians, or to their favorite charity, for their support. That’s like saying I killed the whole family so no one would get survivors guilt.

McCain ran the hearings that helped bring Abramoff down, yet still plays footsie with other big name lobbyists. Obama has banned lobbyists from being involved in his campaign. Nevertheless, one thing the Abramoff case brings to light is how pervasive corruption is in Washington. Moreover, the only way to combat the problem is to COMPLETELY BAN LOBBYISTS! Until that happens, quit saying we are a “Government of the people, by the people”. The lobbyists govern us; Government of the lemmings, by the Lobbyists.

Its The Infrastructure Stupid

This is part of an AP story from August 25, 2008.
...It's the dark side of the booming global demand for U.S. corn, wheat and soybeans. The surge in exports is revealing inefficiencies in the country's railways, highways and rivers that carry the grain that helps feed the world. And those bottlenecks are costing farmers, shippers and ultimately consumers millions of dollars a year...
A surprisingly large harvest this fall is expected to test the system even further. The U.S. Department of Agriculture predicts farmers will produce the second largest corn crop and fourth largest soybean crop in history. Some agribusiness groups worry the bottlenecks could hurt the United States' standing as a global food provider as other nations, such as Brazil and Argentina, compete for a lucrative share of the market. "We're way, way behind in our infrastructure investment, both in the private sector and publicly," said Peter Friedmann, executive director of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition, a trade group representing grain exporters. "And we need to move a lot on that or we will see other countries supplant us as they get greater investment in their infrastructure."
Congress authorized the Army Corps last year to update locks and dams along the Mississippi. But Congress must approve funding for the project, which is estimated to cost $2.21 billion over more than 20 years.

Ok, so Congress is having a tough time authorizing $2.21 billion over 20 years to fix how we can move everything in the US. Let's just say, because of the upcoming election, that nothing is really going to get done in the Government until 2009. It seems that we have agreed to start pulling troops out of Iraq by 2011 that is only 2 years away, and those Men and Women are going to be looking for jobs in an economy that will be still fighting its way out of a recession. We have already spent $500 Billion on the Iraq war, I'm thinking $2.21 to fix our rail, road and water transportation system is an Obvious drop in the bucket.
Let's hope none of the Politicians have to cross any of the bridges in St. Paul, MN...