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The self-made multimillionaire last week painted that postcard of his once-loyal friendship with the patriarch of Alaskan politics. But the portrait emerged at a chilly reunion in an uncomfortable setting more than 3,000 miles from their northern stomping grounds
-- Stevens' corruption trial in Washington, a case that could ruin the senator's career.
Prosecutors called Allen as their star witness against Stevens, who is accused of lying on Senate forms about more than $250,000 worth of free renovations to his mountain cabin and other gifts from Allen and his oil pipelines company, VECO Corp. Allen was expected to return to the witness stand on Monday.
Testifying as part of a deal in which he pleaded guilty to bribing state legislators, Allen told jurors he did not have the heart to bill his buddy for the work. Stevens sometimes asked for bills, Allen said. But Allen said he was informed by a mutual friend that the senator made the requests simply to cover his tracks.
Lawyers for Stevens say the lawmaker relied on his wife to pay tens of thousands of dollars in bills on the remodeling project, and believed the job was above board. They claim Allen, who was overseeing the work while the senator was away, kept Stevens in the dark about the cost of extras such as wraparound decks, a Viking gas grill and fancy outdoor lighting.
Much of Allen's testimony focused on construction at the cabin and what Stevens knew about it. But Allen also spun a folksy backstory of a deep kinship ultimately destroyed by a sudden betrayal.
Allen, 71, spoke in a halting drawl that, he told jurors, was caused by lingering brain damage from a motorcycle accident. He described his steady rise from an apprentice welder in New Mexico to owner of an Alaska-based company with 5,000 employees. He said he first met Stevens in the early 1980s while attending political fundraisers.
As the years went by, the pair grew close. They smoked cigars together at Stevens' cabin. They fished for salmon. They flew together on trips to the Lower 48.
"We kind of really liked each other," Allen testified as the 84-year-old Stevens sat at the defense table with a frown etched on his face. "Had the same thoughts. ... Ted loved Alaska and I loved Alaska."
The witness detailed what prosecutors allege was a sweetheart car swap: A 1964 Ford Mustang and $5,000 from Stevens for a new $44,000 Land Rover purchased by Allen. Allen said he suspected he was getting the raw end, but did it anyway because "I liked Ted."
Handwritten notes from Stevens entered as evidence suggest the admiration was mutual. One note thanked Allen for the "many ways you make my life easier and more enjoyable."
Allen testified Stevens used his Senate seat to help VECO try to win lucrative government contracts and oil deals in the late 1990s. Defense lawyers insist their client merely was doing his duty to protect a constituent.
By 2006, the FBI had Allen under investigation for trying to line the pockets of state legislators voting on a pipeline project. After agents arrived unannounced at his doorstep that year, Allen agreed to cooperate
-- even letting them record phone calls with Stevens -- so long as they did not pursue any charges against his family.
The investigators asked him "to help them to try to get the guys I bribed, and they told me if I did that they wouldn't mess with my kids," he said. "That was it, I guess."
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On the Net:
Justice Department documents: http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/us-v-stevens/
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