Washington ? Former Enron chief Jeffrey Skilling told lawmakers Tuesday that he still has nearly $66 million from the sale of Enron stock during the last two years but expected to use most of the money defending himself from lawsuits.

In a hearing with the Senate Commerce Committee, Skilling was asked how he could reconcile having so much money while many employees lost their retirement savings.

“I think it’s very tough,” Skilling responded. “I don’t know what to say to you.”

Still, in a five-and-a-half-hour grilling by senators, the former Enron chief executive officer remained defiant.

“I have not lied to Congress or anyone else about my recollection of events while I was at Enron,” he said. He lashed out at “all the outrageous things said about me in this process, because some have been so silly that they merit no response.”

At the hearing, Skilling for the first time came face-to-face with Sherron Watkins, who had warned Enron executives last summer that the company could be headed for a spectacular collapse.

In her testimony, she reasserted her charges that Skilling was aware of controversial off-the-books partnerships headed by former Enron financial officer Andrew Fastow.

“I believe that Andy Fastow would not have put his hands in the Enron candy jar without an explicit approval to do so by Mr. Skilling,” said Watkins, an Enron vice president.

Also testifying was Jeffrey McMahon, now Enron’s president and chief operating officer. He had appeared with Skilling at a previous hearing before a House committee, and on Tuesday he repeated his account of a March 16, 2000, meeting in which as treasurer he sought to warn Skilling of problems within a Fastow-run partnership.

Skilling stands by recollections

As he was confronted with conflicting testimony, Skilling stood behind his account of the events leading up to Enron’s Dec. 2 declaration of bankruptcy, and he appeared confident and combative as he fielded questions from skeptical senators.

He also stood by his recollection that the company was financially sound when he quit Aug. 14.

Skilling acknowledged there “may have been self-dealing by a small number of executives, among whom I cannot be counted.” He said he resigned because he was burned out and wanted to spend more time with his family, and had no reason to think the company “was in financial peril.”

“When I worked at Enron, I served the shareholders and the board of directors faithfully,” he said. “Common decency suggests that I be treated as innocent until proven otherwise. … I have nothing to hide.”

Senators expressed disbelief in Skilling’s responses while complimenting Watkins and McMahon on their willingness to air Enron’s problems.

“I wish there had been more Ms. Watkins and Mr. McMahons in the organization, because it might have well prevented this catastrophic demise of one of the largest companies in America,” Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, said.

Skilling made millions

Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., chairman of the committee’s investigation, chided Skilling and other top Enron executives who made millions by selling the company’s stock while thousands of lower-level employees saw their stock-based retirement accounts become worthless after Enron collapsed.

Under questioning from Dorgan, Skilling acknowledged he made $66 million from selling Enron stock between February 1999 and June 2001.

“Do you still have most of that?” Dorgan asked.

“Yes, I do,” Skilling responded.

Dorgan suggested that Skilling share his fortune with destitute Enron employees, but Skilling said he was unable to do so because the money is committed to his legal defense against at least 36 claims stemming from the Enron debacle.

The three executives sat at a witness table in front of the horseshoe-shaped committee dais, separated by their attorneys.

At one point, Skilling shook hands with McMahon and asked him for a glass of water, but for the most part the three had little to say to one another. Skilling stared intently at Watkins and McMahon as they made their opening statements.

At least 10 congressional committees are investigating the Enron collapse, which has been blamed on hundreds of off-the-books partnerships that enabled the company to conceal losses and exaggerate profits.

Witness accounts

Fastow and a small circle of executives made more than $40 million from the arrangement, according to an internal investigation that Enron’s board commissioned.

In Watkins’ testimony Tuesday, she criticized former Enron Chairman Kenneth Lay for not responding to her concerns, saying the Enron founder “didn’t get it” when she warned him about the dangers caused by Enron’s Raptor partnership, which was “hedged” with more than $700 million in Enron stock, facing the company with a disastrous loss as Raptor’s assets declined.

“I fully expected Mr. Lay to conduct a thorough investigation into my concerns,” Watkins said. “I was disappointed that such was not the case.

“I was incredibly frustrated with Mr. Lay’s actions or lack thereof.”

She said the warnings gave Enron “a brief window to salvage itself this past fall, and we missed that opportunity because of Mr. Lay’s failure to recognize or accept that the company had manipulated its financial statements.”

In Watkins’ earlier testimony before the House, she had been more supportive of Lay, saying he had been duped by other Enron executives. She repeated that assertion Tuesday.

Skilling, elaborating on the testimony he gave during his previous congressional appearance, said he was aware of the Raptor partnerships but had been assured by Enron’s accountants that the operation was appropriate and caused no financial threat to the company.