The fight over the e-mails could be critical in the powerful Republican’s corruption trial, since they could give the government ammunition during cross-examination of the senator's wife, Catherine, who is expected to take the witness stand this week.

But, according to the government's latest filing, Catherine Stevens has resisted giving the government documents before 2005, even though the criminal charges extend to 1999 and the bulk of the renovations were carried out in 2000 and 2001.

"The only impediment to the production of these documents appears to be defendant, who does not have standing to quash the subpoena since any spousal privilege relating to these electronic documents has been waived," wrote Edward Sullivan, an attorney with the Justice Department.

"Defendant ... seeks to quash for strategic reasons only, knowing full well that the government is entitled to receive and review these documents before Mrs. Stevens (or defendant) testifies," the Justice Department says.

Joseph Terry, a Stevens defense lawyer, rejected the government's argument in a Monday night filing.

"The government is wrong," Terry wrote. "Not only is Senator Stevens the defendant in this proceeding, but he has not waived his spousal privilege." He also says the government's request is overly broad by seeking e-mails where the senator has a "legitimate privacy interest."

Stevens has pleaded not guilty to seven felony charges of concealing more than $250,000 in gifts and home renovations, mainly from Bill Allen, the former head of the now-defunct Veco oil-services firm.

Catherine Stevens's testimony is becoming one of the most anticipated events of the trial, now entering its fourth week. Defense attorneys say that the senator's wife -- a registered Washington lobbyist -- took the lead role in arranging the payments and home renovations, while the senator was working on Capitol Hill. They argue that the $160,000 the couple paid for renovations -- including the addition of two new decks, a Jacuzzi and an addition of a ground floor -- was a fair price and dispute the government's assertion that a tab of $188,000 was left unpaid.

But the government says the senator was kept in the loop during the elaborate renovations, producing e-mails showing Stevens communicating with Allen and Bob Persons, a friend who oversaw the renovations while the senator was in Washington. Persons is expected to testify Tuesday at the trial, which is being held at the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Some of the e-mails produced at the trial show Stevens discussing the renovations with his wife. 

"CAS: You may want to talk to Rocky about where they are putting in sheetrock," Stevens said in a 2000 e-mail, referring to his wife by her initials and Rocky Williams, who served as the foreman on the renovation project. "The sooner the better."

The Justice Department says the senator's team is sitting on some key e-mails, saying its argument has been bolstered after a "handful" of pre-2005 e-mails from Catherine Stevens were turned over Monday by defense lawyers because they planned to use them during her testimony this week.

The government says for over one year it has been pushing an attorney at Mayer Brown to produce e-mails from Catherine Stevens because she often communicated with her husband on her work e-mail address on a "broad range of personal issues." The first set of documents provided last year only covered 2005-2007.

By August 2008, the government says it received an additional 1,000 e-mails, but only a handful were from before 2005. On Sept. 15, nine days before the start of the trial, the government issued subpoenas for e-mails dating back to 1999. An additional 3,000 e-mails have yet to be handed over, according to the Justice Department.