Salt Lake Tribune: "When lobbyist David Safavian signed on as chief of staff to Utah Rep. Chris Cannon in 2001, he left the door open to return to his old lobby firm and its lucrative stable of clients. Safavian did not sever his ties with his lobbying firm, Janus-Merritt Strategies. Instead, he took a "leave of absence" to work for Cannon." Cannon's press guy now says: 'It was our understanding that when David Safavian left the firm he severed all ties.'"

David Safavian, you'll remember, was the first person to be indicted in the Abramoff investigation.

Late Update: For more detailed info about Safavian's leave of absence racket, check out this post.