Larry Craig Gets Admonished by Ethics Committee Over Bathroom Sex Scandal

Posted by Steve Benen, The Carpetbagger Report at 10:05 AM on February 14, 2008.

There was a point, several months ago, at which Senate Republicans were at a bit of a loss when it came to Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho), who, as you may have heard, had a certain incident in an airport men's room last year. The GOP caucus desperately wanted him to go away, but struggled to figure out a way to make it happen.

First, Republicans thought they could force him to resign. Craig initially agreed, but eventually reversed course. Second, they considered expulsion, but quickly realized they had nowhere near the number of votes they needed to pull it off.

Finally, the GOP said, "Fine, we'll use the Senate Ethics Committee to make Craig's life a living hell. Then he'll resign." In theory, this could have worked -- an ethics probe could air all of Craig's dirty laundry, embarrassing him and his family.

But Craig came to believe the Republicans were bluffing -- Senate Republicans were even less interested in dragging this sex scandal out and creating a public spectacle than he was.

With that in mind, yesterday, the matter seemed to come to a merciful end.

Sen. Larry E. Craig (R-Idaho) was rebuked yesterday by the Senate ethics committee over his conviction for disorderly conduct in an airport men's restroom, with the panel concluding that he committed the offense and citing him for actions "which [have] reflected discreditably on the Senate."

Craig was "publicly admonished" in a letter that closed the case without any formal punishment or a public inquiry into the allegations. Despite calls from fellow Republicans for his resignation, Craig has said he will serve out the remainder of his term and retire next January.

Craig said last night, "I am disappointed and strongly disagree with the conclusions" of the committee, adding that he "will continue to serve the people of Idaho."

Left unsaid in Craig's statement, "And there's nothing anyone can do about it."

For what it's worth, Craig had initially suggested that an ethics probe could absolve him, if senators came to believe the original misdemeanor charge was unfounded.

That didn't happen.

[T]he committee concluded that Craig's efforts to withdraw his guilty plea were an attempt to duck fallout after the arrest and subsequent guilty plea were reported in late August.

"It appears you are attempting to withdraw your plea in significant part because your initial calculation that you could avoid public disclosure of, and adverse public reaction to, this matter by pleading guilty proved wrong. . . . We consider your attempt to withdraw your guilty plea to be an attempt to evade the legal consequences of an action freely undertaken by you -- that is, pleading guilty," the committee wrote in a letter signed by all six senators on the panel.

The senators also cited Craig for using more than $213,000 from his campaign committee to pay legal expenses in the case without getting permission from the ethics committee.

So, what's next for Craig? Probably not much. A few months back, Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) effectively ruled out expulsion, but said, "[T]here's a good chance of censureship [sic]." And, I suppose, if Brownback and others wanted to push a censure resolution onto the floor, it might very well pass.

But my hunch is yesterday brought the matter to a close. No one, anywhere, wants to drag this story out another day.

Tagged as: ethics, republican hypocrisy, republican party, craig

Steve Benen is a freelance writer/researcher and creator of The Carpetbagger Report. In addition, he is the lead editor of Salon.com's Blog Report, and has been a contributor to Talking Points Memo, Washington Monthly, Crooks & Liars, The American Prospect, and the Guardian.