From PRI, Public Radio International and KCRW Santa Monica, this is To the Point.

Big banks, big bonuses, and big government.

Hello again, I'm Warren Olney, and this is To the Poet from Public Radio International.

A daily look at the issues Americans care about most.

Even when Wall Street banks were losing money and receiving taxpayer bailouts, top traders were getting

multi-million dollar bonuses. Now some of the same institutions are at it again, guaranteeing big

money even before any work is performed. The banks say that's what it takes to get the best people,

but critics contend it creates risk takers with nothing to lose, except the nation's economic

stability. Are the same people who helped create the ongoing great recession now being

rewarded? Is it time for the government to step in or should the free market prevail? Would

regulations stifle free competition or prevent another financial disaster?

First, here's the news.

Support for To the Point comes from subscribers of KCRW Santa Monica and from the Public Radio International Program Fund,

whose contributors include the Ford Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. McArthur Foundation,

and the Rockefeller Foundation and its campaign for American workers. More at rockfound.org. Hello again, Mormon Alany. Back with To the point. A federal judge has accused two Wall Street firms of lying to their shareholders about executive compensation. At the same time, big banks that got taxpayer bailouts are resuming the practice

of guaranteeing multi-million dollar bonuses that don't depend on performance. Are new regulations

needed? We'll hear a debate today. First, this news update, a former federal prosecutor fired

during the Bush administration, says White House emails and interviews now confirm his worst nightmares that Carl Rove and his deputies violated the law.

David Iglesias was the U.S. Attorney for New Mexico. He spoke with Michael Isikoff of Newsweek magazine. And Michael, good to have you on our program.

Good to be with you.

The occasion for your interview was the release of a trove of documents by a congressional committee. What all's in there?

Well, quite a bit. I mean, this is an old controversy. The firing of the U.S. attorneys

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