lkmcgann July 31, 2007, 10:08 AM

Two dozen FBI and the IRS agents took a close look yesterday at the infamous remodeling job overseen by Veco Corp. that doubled the size of Sen. Ted Stevens’ (R-AK) home, snagging him in the widening probe into Alaska political corruption .

The Anchorage Daily News has the colorful details.

The agents were at Stevens’ improved home in the small town of Girdwood with curtains drawn well into the night — collecting evidence and shooting photos and video of the house and neighboring property. The FBI and IRS declined to comment on the raid, but a reporter perched outside Stevens’ home got a pretty good idea of what was going on:

The agents were obviously cataloging the house and its fixtures, from light switches and electrical outlets to a big stainless steel barbecue grill on a second-floor deck that neighbors said was hoisted there with a crane. At one point, agents climbed on the pitched metal roof to take pictures of heat tape in the gutters.

One agent carried a full large black garbage bag out of the house and put it in the white truck.

Stevens, who is the most senior Republican in the Senate, sits on the Commerce, Science and Transportation and Appropriations committees. Known for his aggressive earmarking, watchdog group Taxpayers for Common Sense will ask Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to temporarily remove Stevens from his posts until the federal investigation ends, according to Roll Call (sub req.):

According to a source with the group, this will be the first time TCS has ever made such an appeal. But the organization will argue in a letter to McConnell that given the current public concern with Congressional ethics, he should take a path similar to one the House GOP leadership has followed and request that Stevens relinquish his seats on the two powerful committees until the investigation is completed….

In the letter, TCS President Ryan Alexander will argue that McConnell should ask Stevens to step down “until this federal investigation can be resolved and the public trust restored,” said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the letter had not yet been completed as of this posting.

Stevens’ son, former state Senate President Ben Stevens has been implicated in receiving questionable payments from Veco executives, and Rep. Don Young (R-AK) is under federal investigation for his ties to the company as well.

Update: See the letter from Taxpayers for Common Sense here.

Must Read, Ted Stevens