Idaho Republican
Larry Craig has decided he wants to be a U.S. senator a
little longer. His tenure may still be a short one.
Craig's lawyers
asked a Minnesota judge Wednesday to let the three-term
senator withdraw his guilty plea in a sex sting at a
Minneapolis airport restroom. Afterward, Craig issued
a statement saying he will stay in office ''for now.''
People close to
Craig said that means until the judge rules.
Hennepin County
judge Charles Porter said that will be at the end of next
week at the earliest.
Craig said
earlier he planned to resign September 30, then left the
door open to stay if he could successfully withdraw
his plea.
Craig, who
originally had planned to seek a fourth term next year,
pleaded guilty in August to disorderly conduct following a
June 11 sting operation in a men's room at the
Minneapolis airport.
That he will stay
in the Senate past Sunday was an unwelcome development
for Senate Republican leaders who have made clear they wish
Craig would step down and let Idaho's GOP governor,
C.L. ''Butch'' Otter, name a replacement.
Otter canceled an
extended tour of the state's overcrowded prisons this
week to interview some of the nearly 30 people -- including
Lt. Gov. Jim Risch and Atty. Gen. Lawrence Wasden --
who have publicly expressed interest in Craig's job.
''He wanted to be
ready to act if we received a letter of resignation,''
said Jon Hanian, Otter's spokesman in Boise. ''Obviously, we
had not.... Until he receives a letter of resignation,
we have no vacancy, therefore, there is no
replacement.''
Senate minority
leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky told reporters he had
nothing to add to previous statements in which he said he
thought Craig made the proper decision on September 1,
when he announced his intention to resign by month's
end.
Idaho Republican
senator Mike Crapo, Craig's strongest ally in the
Senate, said that Craig, ''like every citizen facing
allegations, deserves to be able to fully defend
himself.''
Craig's lawyer,
Billy Martin, said it is ''near impossible, and it should
be'' for Craig to withdraw his plea. But he said his
client's conduct -- shoe tapping and hand gestures
under a men's room stall divider -- was not criminal.
The arresting
officer described those gestures as signals recognized in
the gay community as an invitation for sex. Craig has
repeatedly said he is not homosexual.
Jim Weatherby,
professor emeritus of political science at Boise State
University, said Craig has been permanently weakened by the
charges.
''How effective
can he be when his leadership wants him out?'' Weatherby
asked. ''I suspect they would want to punish him further
than the steps they've already taken.''
Craig gave up his
leadership posts on Senate committees after his arrest
become public. Senate Republicans would have to vote to
restore those posts, an action seen as highly
unlikely. (Matthew Daly, AP)
