You are not old fashioned . We all know thousands of dollars are spent with lobbyists and by lobbyists and accepted in some form by politicians of both sides. Its unethical its immoral and it just aint right. But it goes on. What they are buying is a foot in the door. Now we all have a right to go see our Representatives , but these guys get appointments while we talk to staffers.
Let's face it, the Gov't at all levels has become, in the last 20 years or so, about as corrupt as many Third World Countries. IMO The Abramoff thing is just the tip of the iceberg and it infects both sides of the aisle. Short of serious revolution I really don't know how it gets corrected and I'm serious.