It Has Begun

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The prosecution kicked off the trial of David Safavian this morning with their opening statement. Justin will be checking in a little later with his account of what he saw, but here’s a little taste from the AP. It will certainly not be the last time that golf comes up in this trial:

At the start of the first trial in the Abramoff influence peddling scandal, prosecutor Peter Zeidenberg told a jury that David Safavian provided substantial amounts of information about government-controlled properties that the lobbyist wanted for himself or his clients.

Using his official position, Safavian “worked first and foremost for a rich, powerful” lobbyist and personal friend and then he “lied and concealed in order to keep the truth from the public,” Zeidenberg told the jury of 10 women and two men.

Abramoff “constantly dangled” the prospect that Safavian could return to the private sector and join Abramoff’s lobbying operation, “where he would make a great deal of money and he would play a great deal of golf,” Zeidenberg told the jury.

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