Craig’s Conundrum, Day Two
Well, we’ve learned quite a bit about Sen. Larry Craig’s (R-Idaho) arrest since late yesterday afternoon, and all of it suggests the senator is in a very unfortunate place. For example, Craig was not only charged with soliciting sex in an airport men’s room; he pleaded guilty.
Senator Larry E. Craig, Republican of Idaho, was arrested in June by an undercover police officer in a men’s bathroom at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, and pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in the case three weeks ago.
Mr. Craig, 62, was fined more than $500 and placed on unsupervised probation for a year. A 10-day jail sentence was suspended, according to a copy of a court document in the case. A second charge, interference with privacy, was dismissed.
The arresting officer explained in his report that Craig tapped his foot, “in what the officer called a known signal to engage in lewd conduct,” brushed his foot against the officer’s, and waved his hand under the stall divider “several times.” In a statement, Craig said his actions had been “misconstrued.”
As for pleading guilty, Craig said, “I should have had the advice of counsel in resolving this matter. In hindsight, I should not have pled guilty. I was trying to handle this matter myself quickly and expeditiously.”
I realize the circumstances of the arrest must be humiliating for the senator, but fabricating a ridiculous defense only exacerbates the political problem here. Why did he rub his foot against the police officer’s? Because, he said, he “has a wide stance when going to the bathroom.” Why did he wave his hand repeatedly under the stall divider? Because he was reaching for a piece of paper (that did not apparently exist). Why did he plead guilty to criminal charges? Because he was in a hurry.
This was bound to be a disaster for Craig either way, but Crisis Management 101 tells us to come clean immediately, apologize, get the facts out, hunker down, and hope for the story to blow over. Bizarre fabrications are only going to make this worse.
This is a political scandal with multiple angles.
* Potential abuse of power: Roll Call reported, “After he was arrested, Craig, who is married, was taken to the Airport Police Operations Center to be interviewed about the lewd conduct incident, according to the police report. At one point during the interview, Craig handed the plainclothes sergeant who arrested him a business card that identified him as a U.S. Senator and said, ‘What do you think about that?’ the report states.” Was Craig trying to intimidate or pressure investigators?
* Craig’s personal history: About a year ago, blogactive.com outed Craig as being gay, though the senator dismissed the report as “completely ridiculous,” and having “no basis in fact.” After the charges surfaced, the Idaho Statesman investigated and spoke to a man, on the record, who claimed to have had sex with Craig in a Union Station restroom. Craig denied the man’s account and said, “I am not gay and I have never been in a restroom in Union Station having sex with anybody.” (A month later, Craig was arrested in Minneapolis.) Craig also had to deny playing a role in the congressional page sex scandal in the 1980s.
* Presidential politics: Craig has been a major supporter of Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign — he cited the governor’s “family values” as the basis for his endorsement — and the Romney campaign is now distancing itself from Craig as quickly as humanly possible, including removing the endorsement video from the campign’s site and from YouTube.
* Who knew what, when?: The arrest and guilty plea came over two months ago. Did the Senate GOP leadership know about this? The Minority Leader’s office says it did not. “We just found out about this incident late this afternoon,” said Josh Holmes, a spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).
* Next stop, Ethics Committee?: Whenever a senator is convicted of a crime, the matter is supposed to be referred to the Ethics Committee for a review. Yesterday, the committee’s chairperson, Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), declined to comment.
* Losing support: Hugh Hewitt has already called for Craig’s resignation, and it’s safe to assume he won’t be the last.
* The hypocrisy: The LAT reported, “But the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force issued a statement calling attention to Craig’s support for a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage and his opposition to legislation that would expand the federal hate crime law to cover violent acts based on a victim’s sex, sexual orientation, sexual identity or disability.” (He also opposes civil unions and gays serving in the military.)
John J. Pitney Jr., a professor of American politics at Claremont McKenna College, said, “The incident is bad enough, but the contrast with his stand on family values is appalling. In the culture of Washington, political hypocrisy is just as hurtful as anything that happened in a lavatory.”
I’m starting to think the ‘G’ in GOP don’t mean ‘grand.’
Stick it to him! ummm.. No pun intended.
I’m not Gay, I have a “wide stance”!
Fabulous
The arrest was over two months ago, the guilty plea came earlier this month. It sorta makes you wonder just how he was mulling this over for two months and somehow failed to consult a lawyer…unless he is lying about this also.
In a republican world where John Edwards is a “faggot” because he has hair and John Kerry is gay because he has hair and windsurfs- and Al Gore is gay and Bill Clinton too- how come the repubs keep getting arrested trying to felate men in public bathrooms? They’re like bad stereotypical 1940’s gays who have to have shameful sex in a public men’s room. Guys it’s 2007- just be gay and be yourself and you could have normal sex in like private legally even. Hey coulter- which party has all the faggots?
“John J. Pitney Jr., a professor of American politics at Claremont McKenna College, said, “The incident is bad enough, but the contrast with his stand on family values is appalling. In the culture of Washington, political hypocrisy is just as hurtful as anything that happened in a lavatory.””
Well, duh. That’s the only thing that makes this incident notable.
I’m betting the atmosphere in the GOP closet, uh, caucus just got tenser.
Why didn’t he just say that he was out of TP?? I don’t know which is sadder, his hypocrisy or his inability to come up with a plausible lie.
Republican’ts can’t hide their man-love forever.
I was wondering what someone would need to do to make a prostitute-soliciting-diaper-fetish-boy Senator look respectable.
R E P U B L I C A N
Relatively Erect Penis Under Bathroom Lights Inhabits Craig’s Anonymous Nook
The Goatish Old Perverts party.
In a republican world where John Edwards is a “faggot” because he has hair and John Kerry is gay because he has hair and windsurfs- and Al Gore is gay and Bill Clinton too-
If I were to make any judgments about Larry Craig, it wouldn’t be on the basis of his sexual orientation, it would on the basis of his lack of intelligence. Someone who is a US Senator, who is not smart enough to know that trolling for sex in a public bathroom is colossally stupid, who then pleads guilty to the charge – doesn’t even seek legal advice – is not a smart person.
It’s not the sex, it’s the stupidity.
Idaho, of course, is also the home state of Helen Chenoweth, who was once memorably described as “living proof that you can fuck your brains out.” And ex-Senator Steven Symms: “Although considered a social conservative, he was known for his various infidelities while Senator and is divorced.”
Guess they just like makin’ whoopee up in Idaho.
Another hypocrite bites the dust. Why am I just hearing about this now?!
This is what being a Republican is now. I am sure Craig considers himself Republican, because of his stance on lower taxes, smaller government, and stronger military. However; since the GOP has allowed the religous right to determine it’s platform he has to hide his sexuality and speak out against gay rights and freedom of choice as well, if he wants to get elected. Just sad really.
As cal Seff said, in America you can be gay. In the Republican party you cannot.
I seem to recall during the Clinton mess that the standard Repub line was that it wasn’t the “crime” that was the issue, it was the subsequent lying that was the problem. So where is the Republican outrage with all of the lies meant to cover up this spate of homosexual behavior?
I guess the reason those guys (i.e. Republican Congressmen) were so irate about Monica was that she was a GIRL. I mean gee, what was Clinton thinking?
# 12 Anne
Yeah. And to add to the colossal stupidity, would be the showing of his US Senator business card to the cops in hopes of either being intimidating or of catching some kind of consideration. Any cop would look at that and say, “You know, the best way to keep things quiet, if you’re guilty, is to tell the truth right away about your guilt. You’ll pay your fine and be on your way and we won’t be saying anything to anybody unless they ask.”
I’m sure that was the interrogator’s reaction to Larry’s card trick.
For example, Craig was not only charged with soliciting sex in an airport men’s room; he pleaded guilty.
You’re heading into Faux News territory CB. He was picked up for lewd behaviour but plead guilty to disorderly conduct. You’re getting the intial charge wrong and conflating it with his plea. If Faux did it, we’d all scream.
Not that any of this reduces the amusement value of the story by even a 10th of a percent. My favourite part (so far) is his “I shouldn’t have plead guilty,” comment. I wonder if the reason for his buyer’s remorse can be found in the Archives:
Of course, vindication by admitting he just wanted consensual sex with a guy might not have been what Craig wanted either. He is stuck in an o-so-deserved trap he helped build. By pleading guilty to avoid further enquiry he’s now going to be investigated by the Senate and might be asked/forced to resign. By coming up with lame excuses about his “stance” he draws more attention to the story. And because he’s made it part of his career to support homophobia he can’t really expect his voters to forgive him if he did fight the case using the Latham defense.
[cue Nelson Muntz]: Ha ha!
Q: Why are there so many cops hanging around public bathrooms? Is that really the best thing they could be spending time on?
A: You wouldn’t think so, but they are actually saving the republic.
Well, it does explain why he’s against gays in the military. He needs them home! In public restrooms! Waiting for him!
“Q: Why are there so many cops hanging around public bathrooms? Is that really the best thing they could be spending time on?”
Actually, according to another site, this “widened stance” was due to the pressure from the very anti-gay groups that endorsed folks like Larry Craig. He was caught in a net of his own making.
# 20 Haik Bedrosian
According to the coverage in the NY Times, the cop was “investigating complaints of sexual activity in the bathroom,” not just hanging around. I wondered myself at first about the apparently amazing bad luck of a senator to pick a stall next to a police officer.
#12 Anne, I’m not sure stupidity is the best explanation. I wonder if part of the thrill is the chance of being caught. Though I’m no expert – all it takes for me to get a little frisson of wild living is to kiss my wife while we’re outside, in potential view of the neighbors.
After reading about this in the paper this morning, it occurred to me that my job isn’t so bad. At least I don’t have to sit on the crapper in an airport restroom waiting for some poor devil to proposition me.
Q: Why are there so many cops hanging around public bathrooms? Is that really the best thing they could be spending time on?
Exactly what I was thinking – isn’t anyone else disgusted at the idea of undercover cops hanging around toilets trying to catch desperate homosexuals?
Apparently not the Republicans who demand such measures and then get arrested accordingly… like Senator Craig. But still.
A: You wouldn’t think so, but they are actually saving the republic.
Apparently so. Score one for satisfying irony and poestic justice.
Hey all he has to do is ,
Claim he has an alcohol abuse problem, then that he has now found God whom he had lost briefly and he recognizes he was being influenced by satan.
Forgiven reelected and embraced.
Q: Why are there so many cops hanging around public bathrooms? Is that really the best thing they could be spending time on?
Exactly what I was thinking – isn’t anyone else disgusted at the idea of undercover cops hanging around toilets trying to catch desperate homosexuals?
Apparently not the Republicans who demand such measures and then get arrested accordingly… like Senator Craig. But still.
A: You wouldn’t think so, but they are actually saving the republic.
Apparently so. Score one for satisfying irony and poetic justice.
Thank-you to the Police for taking on this sad stake-out
Can you imagine the Craig excitement factor if a young boy was in the next stall?
This is not the end of the story for Craig. It’s going to get worse. Gay men are going to come forward and say they’d had sex with him. He’s fuct.
One more reason to believe that: THE HOMOPHOBES ARE HOMOSEXUALS IN DENIEL.
“Idaho Sen. Larry Craig, who has voted against gay marriage and opposes extending special protections to gay and lesbian crime victims . . . .”
Larry Craig is guilty of the liberal sin of HYPOCRISY. La Rochefoucauld called hypocrisy, “The tribute that Vice pays to Virtue.” The Devil pays no tribute to Virtue. He demands undivided allegiance from sinners. Larry Craig sinned but refused to bend his knee to the Devil. That is why the Devil is after his head now. Larry Craig refused to enshrine the homosexual agenda in the temple of law.
Yet, Larry Craig must go now because the people of Idaho deserve a chance to elect a stalwart opponent of the homosexual agenda, one who cannot be blackmailed, a fear Larry Craig has lived with for his 27 years in office. Blackmail is invidious because it is hidden. Only the blackmailer and his victim know of it. This makes blackmail a dire threat to republican (small “r”) government. The voters never learn the true motives for the political decisions made by their elected representatives who are being blackmailed. This is why the people need to know the character of their leaders. The chance of blackmail is too great a risk. The alternative of surrender to vice is too great a price.
Larry Craig’s disgrace can be forgiven by a loving God but he has broken faith with his constituents. They can forgive him as Christians but they cannot be required to return him to office. Larry Craig’s greatest service now would be to step down and allow someone who has a better chance to defeat the “liberals,” “secular progressives,” or whatever else they are calling themselves nowadays and thwart the perverse homosexual agenda.
Hey #31 CallMeIshmael
How’d your crackpot war against the libruhl homersexyuls work out for you in the last election?
You’re on your way out. Get used to it. Maybe you can join up with other Gawd-fearin’ homophobes like the Reverend Ted and the Westboro Baptists and git dem homos and their agendas.
I just LOVE the “Wide Stance” thing…… Anybody out there really good with playing with digital photos???………. Would be great to see some Wide-Stance pics of the GOP presidential line-up! …. Maybe a you-tube W-S debate????
I hardly think expecting equal protection under the law from being terrorized, and to be treated with the same rights as everyone else qualifies as an “agenda”.
On the other hand, if a group of people want to eliminate or marginalize another group… well, that’s another story altogether. Sound familiar? I thought not.
Anyway, can we declare a moratorium on that phrase now? It’s ridiculous and makes people sound like complete buffoons!
To #31
Your rationalization is way too complicated. If there’s anything that 8 years of Bush presidency has taught me, Republican spinsters like quippy little catch phrases to explain complicated issues. Going into detailed reasoning makes the supporters eyes glaze over.
Republican Repulsive Family Values Hypocrisy!
http://osi-speaks.blogspot.com/2007/08/memorable-quote-senator-larry-craig.html#links
Wow, blows you away (no pun intended). The hyprocracy is what really gets you, here is a guy so bent on making sure gay or bisexual people not have the rights that others get and yet he is caught trying to give or get head to another man. There is no way out of this for Sen Craig, he is toast. I feel sorry for his wife and family, not for him at all. There must be easier ways to give head, but it really does make one wonder.