End Game

The prosecution and the defense rested their cases yesterday in the Enron trial, and, the headline of this article notwithstanding, you don't need to be an expert to know that it all comes down to whether the jury believes the testimony of Jeff Skilling and Ken Lay. When defendants testify, it is almost always all about them.

From this distant perch, it doesn't look good for either defendant, and Lay in particular may want to beat the rush and place a toilet three feet from the bed, just to get used to the feeling. I have yet to see a single trial account that described his cross-examination as anything other than a decisive victory for prosecutors. Of course, they had a lot to work with, not least of which was Lay's repeated -- and ridiculous -- contention that Enron, a Fortune 10 corporation with thousands of employees, was done in by the unholy trinity of Andy Fastow, short sellers, and a few articles in The Wall Street Journal.

Closing arguments begin Monday.