ited or landed administration introductions included foreign figures and American Indian tribes, according to emails gathered by Senate investigators and federal prosecutors or obtained independently by Associated Press.

"Can the tribes contribute $100,000 for the effort to bring state legislatures and those tribal leaders who have passed Bush resolutions to Washington?" Mr Norquist wrote to Abramoff in one such email in July 2002.

"When I have funding, I will ask Karl Rove for a date with the President. Karl has already said 'yes' in principle, and knows you organised this last time and hope to this year."

The Senate committee that previously investigated Abramoff aired evidence showing Mr Bush met some of Abramoff's clients at the White House in 2001 after they donated money to Mr Norquist's group.

However, the 2002 email about a second White House meeting and donations was not disclosed. AP obtained the text from people with access to the documents.

The tribes representatives got to meet Mr Bush at the White House again in 2002, and then donated to Mr Norquist's Americans for Tax Reform, or ATR.

Though Mr Norquist's own email connects the $US100,000 ($136,000) donation and the White House visit, ATR spokesman John Kartch said Mr Norquist did not offer to arrange the meetings in exchange for money.

In fact, Mr Norquist had simply wanted Abramoff's tribes officials to pay towards the funding of a conference where lawmakers and tribal leaders passed resolutions supporting the Bush agenda, ultimately securing a brief meeting with the President, Mr Kartch said.

Lawyers for Abramoff declined to comment on the revelations.

The White House said Mr Rove was unaware Mr Norquist had solicited money in connection with ATR events in 2001 and 2002 that brought Abramoff's tribal clients and others to the White House.

"We do not solicit donations in exchange for meetings or events at the White House, and we don't have any knowledge of this activity taking place," a White House spokeswoman said.

After the tribes' 2002 encounter with Mr Bush, Mr Norquist pressed Abramoff again for tribal donations -- this time for a political action committee.

"Jack, a few months ago you said you could get each of your Indian tribes to make a contribution ... Is this still possible?" Mr Norquist asked in an October 2002 email.

Abramoff responded: "Everyone is tapped out, having given directly to the campaigns. After the election, we'll be able to get this moving."

However, the emails clearly show Abramoff delivered on his original promise to get tribal money for the event that included Mr Bush's visit, sending one cheque from the Mississippi Choctaw tribe in October and one in November from the Saginaw Chippewa of Michigan.

But Mr Kartch said Abramoff did not deliver on the PAC contributions.

Mr Norquist and Abramoff are longtime associates, whose friendship goes back decades to their days in the Young Republicans movement.