I was surprised.  I had no idea Powell had much to do with Ted Stevens.  Shows what I know!

Colin Powell arrives at senator's corruption trial

• Story Highlights
• NEW: Colin Powell, senator from Hawaii top list of defense witnesses
  
• Prosecutors fighting judge's decision ordering them to drop certain evidence
  
• Sen. Ted Stevens' defense has accused prosecution of withholding evidence
  
• Stevens is accused of failing to report renovations to his home
  

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Former Secretary of State Colin Powell arrived Thursday at U.S. District Court in Washington as a possible character witness in Sen. Ted Stevens' corruption trial.

Powell and Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, who also arrived before the jury Thursday, are at the top of the witness list for defense attorneys representing the Alaska Republican.

The prosecution has not yet rested.

Prosecutors say Stevens lied on mandatory Senate financial disclosure forms. They are fighting a judge's decision ordering them to drop certain evidence Stevens deemed unacceptable.

U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan said Wednesday the government could not use documents and testimony about certain payroll records.

Sullivan also barred records about what prosecutors called a "sweetheart" car deal between Stevens and Bill Allen, the founder of Veco Corp., an Alaska oil industry contractor.

Prosecutors filed a request overnight, asking the court to reconsider and saying they intend to call another witness before resting their case.

Defense attorneys had planned to begin presenting their case as early as Thursday.

Stevens is fighting a seven-count indictment for allegedly failing to report hundreds of thousands of dollars in gifts, primarily from Allen and dealing mostly with renovations to Stevens' family chalet in the ski town of Girdwood, Alaska.

Before Stevens' indictment in July, a Veco employee who acted as a foreman on the residential project told investigators that he was not in Alaska during the months that payroll records suggest he was working at the Stevens house.

Prosecutors introduced the records knowing about the discrepancy.

Sullivan delivered an extended scolding to prosecutors Wednesday during oral arguments on a defense motion to stop the trial.

Previous defense motions to dismiss the charges have accused the government of a pattern of misconduct, including what Sullivan described last week as a deliberate attempt to "hide the ball" regarding mandatory disclosure of evidence that could help Stevens.

During the hearing, the judge and the defense seemed convinced the prosecution had called its last witness, but overnight, the government filed notice it wants to call the Veco employee at the center of the payroll dispute.

The hours billed to the Stevens project were estimated at about $17,000. The figure is included in the indictment's allegation that as much as $250,000 in gifts went unreported.

The car deal also did not appear on Stevens' Senate financial disclosure forms.

Stevens traded a collectible 1964 Mustang for a 1999 Land Rover that Allen purchased but never picked up from the dealer's lot. Despite Stevens giving Allen $5,000 along with his old car, the difference in value toward the Land Rover should have been reported, prosecutors said.

But after Allen testified he couldn't remember what he paid for the Land Rover, prosecutors provided a bank check they claim represents the purchase price.

Defense attorneys cried foul and convinced the judge to strike references to the car swap because prosecutors failed to follow his orders about providing such evidence to the defense.