Sen. Larry Craig will leave the Senate before 2008 - what do you think?
BOISE, Idaho - Idaho Sen. Larry Craig resigned Saturday over a men’s room sex sting, bowing to pressure from fellow Republicans worried about a scandal dimming their election prospects.
“I apologize for what I have caused. I am deeply sorry,” Craig said, his wife Suzanne at his side.
Craig’s resignation completed a stunning downfall that began Monday with the disclosure that he pleaded guilty to a reduced charge following his arrest during a sex sting in a Minneapolis airport men’s room.
Although leading members of his own party had called for him to step down, Craig steadfastly resisted resigning for days, contending he had done nothing wrong and that his only mistake was pleading guilty Aug. 1 to a misdemeanor charge.
President Bush called Craig from the White House after the senator’s announcement and told him he knew it was a difficult decision to make, said White House spokesman Scott Stanzel.
“Senator Craig made the right decision for himself, for his family, his constituents and the United States Senate,” Stanzel said.
Craig was arrested June 11 in a police undercover vice operation in a men’s room at the Minneapolis airport. The arresting officer, Sgt. Dave Karsnia, said in his report that the restroom is a known location for homosexual activity.
“I am not gay. I never have been gay,” Craig said defiantly after a news conference Tuesday. He said he had kept the incident from aides, friends and family and pleaded guilty “in hopes of making it go away.”