A Senate ethics investigation awaits Larry Craig, but there is no similar outrage over the alleged corruption of Ted Stevens (or David Vitter, for that matter). Joe Conason examines the double standard:
For an object lesson in the distorted values of the United States Senate, consider how that august institution is handling the ethical embarrassments created by Republican
As everyone in America knows by now, Craig pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge for an indiscretion in an airport men's room. Stevens, along with his son Ben and a number of other Alaska politicians and businessmen, is the subject of a corruption investigation that resulted in an FBI raid on his home last summer. Every day, the pressure mounts on Craig from his colleagues to resign — and every day, those same colleagues treat Stevens as if he remains above suspicion.
The Craig case is currently under investigation by the Senate Ethics Committee, yet no such probe of the Stevens matter has commenced. According to the prevailing morality in the Senate, a legislator who may or may not have signaled his prurient interest in another man demands the most searching scrutiny, but a legislator who quite plainly accepted financial favors from a contractor deserves none.