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A federal prosecutor said former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder “sold the statehouse,” ripped off the people he was elected to serve and made a backroom deal to exchange his power for money.
The Perry County Republican, once one of Ohio's most powerful politicians, is on trial in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati alongside lobbyist Matt Borges, a former chair of the Ohio Republican Party, in what prosecutors have described as the largest corruption case in state history.
At trial, prosecutors portrayed Larry Householder as an unprincipled official who pulled together a criminal scheme in a lust for power and to line his pockets. Householder's attorneys said he was a normal politician trying to save jobs.
Former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and state GOP Chair Matt Borges are accused of taking part in a $60 million scheme.
The two defendants both said they are optimistic about the trial and “relieved” that the wait is over to make their case.