It appears that the Jack Abramoff investigation may be about to reach its
tipping point. According to the NYT, Abramoff himself is
set to sign a plea agreement admitting to guilt and cooperating against former associates:
Jack Abramoff, the Republican lobbyist under indictment for fraud in South Florida, is expected to complete a plea agreement in the Miami criminal case, setting the stage for him to become a crucial witness in a broad federal corruption investigation, people with direct knowledge of the case said.
One participant in the case said the deal could be made final as early as next week.
The terms of the plea deal have not been completed, and the negotiations are especially complicated because they involve prosecutors both in Miami and in Washington, where Mr. Abramoff is being investigated in a separate influence-peddling inquiry, participants said. Details of what he feels comfortable pleading guilty to are "probably largely worked out," the participant said, while the details of the prison sentence are less resolved.
[snip]
The case, being worked on by dozens of investigators as part of a multiagency task force, has expanded in recent months to put senior Republican officials and prominent party lobbyists under immense scrutiny.
The article strongly implies that the plea deal will involve Abramoff testifying against "at least a dozen lawmakers and their former staff members" regarding their "corruption scheme." Although Abramoff would apparently only plead guilty in the Florida case (although even that is not entirely clear from the article), his plea would require him to testify against associates in both the Florida case AND in the Washington case, which is the one that involves the Republican Congress critters.
I would have to imagine, however, that no self-respecting prosecutor would allow someone like Jack Abramoff, who clearly was the key player in the various corrupt and fraudulent pay-for-play schemes, and who also has now received INTENSE media scrutiny, to receive a light sentence in a plea bargain unless he were about to help them reel in some extremely big big fish.