Craig leaves committee posts

30 Aug 2007 // Sen. Larry E. Craig, Idaho Republican, yesterday agreed to temporarily step down from his committee posts at the request of party leaders, as Sen. John McCain joined other Capitol Hill Republicans in calling for his resignation.

The White House expressed disappointment in — and no support for — the 62-year-old senator, who pleaded guilty earlier this month to a charge stemming from a police sex sting in an airport restroom.

Mr. Craig served as the ranking member of the Senate's Veterans' Affairs Committee; the Appropriations subcommittee on the interior, environment and related agencies; and the Energy and Natural Resources subcommittee on public lands and forests.

"[B]ut my opinion is that when you plead guilty to a crime, you shouldn't serve. That's not a moral stand. That's not a holier-than-thou. It's just a factual situation," Mr. McCain told CNN.

The senator from Arizona, a presidential candidate, joined Sen. Norm Coleman of Minnesota and Rep. Peter Hoekstra of Michigan, all Republicans, in saying that Mr. Craig should give up his seat in the Senate.

Mr. Coleman said, "Senator Craig pled guilty to a crime involving conduct unbecoming a senator." Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and Minority Whip Trent Lott of Mississippi announced that Mr. Craig heeded their request to remove himself from the committees.

Mr. Craig defended himself during a press conference Tuesday in Boise, Idaho, saying he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct charges only because he panicked after his June 11 arrest in a men's restroom at the Minneapolis airport.

"While I was not involved in any inappropriate conduct at the Minneapolis airport or anywhere else, I chose to plead guilty to a lesser charge in the hope of making it go away," he said.

Mr. Craig said he is not a homosexual and was not soliciting sex at the airport as the arresting officer charged.

The conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch has called for the senator to consider stepping down.

"Senator Craig admittedly engaged in illegal activity that brings serious disrepute to the public office he holds," said group President Tom Fitton.

Also yesterday, a leader of Christian conservatives in Idaho said Mr. Craig should resign because he can no longer be a credible advocate for pro-family values.

"I don't think anybody pleads guilty to conceal innocent behavior," said Brian Fischer, executive director of the Idaho Values Alliance.

The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington called Senate Republican leaders hypocritical for asking Mr. Craig to step down from his committee responsibilities but not seeking the same punishment for other Republican senators who are under investigation for reputed crimes.

"Senator Ted Stevens [of Alaska] maintains his position on the Appropriations Committee despite being the subject of a major criminal investigation, including an FBI raid on his Alaska home, and Senator David Vitter [of Louisiana] maintains his assignments despite admitting to the crime of soliciting a prostitute," said Melanie Sloan, executive director of the liberal watchdog group.

The group has filed a complaint with the Senate's ethics committee asking for an investigation of Mr. Craig's case.