The Senator Craig Crisis – What Was He Thinking?
Although we make judgments here, it is impossible to determine exactly what happened to Senator Larry Craig in the airport restroom in Minneapolis. After listening to the audio tapes released by the police department, it was apparent though that the soon-to-be-resigned Senator seemed frightened when he was being interviewed by the sex sting detective.
What is missing in the Senator’s voice is a sense of passion or outrage about the episode as he carefully engineers the accusatory terrain of the arresting officer. The end result of the interview was that he plead guilty to a misdemeanor.
So the questions remain. If he was, as he says, not guilty, why did he make the plea? He had to know it would be made public one day. The fact that he didn’t consult a lawyer was even more dramatic. A man of his extensive experience in public life would know better. These are the mysteries that surround his ordeal, one brought on by himself.
One of the extraordinary political consequences was the speed of the chorus from the Republican party calling for him to step aside. You have to presume that the scandals of 2006, especially the slow reaction to the Congressman Foley scandal, has left a mark on Republicans.
Let us also not forget that these types of scandals have hit both parties with equal force.
I have to think that elected officials everywhere will look at the Larry Craig episode as a textbook reaction on how not to respond to crisis.
Now, the only lingering question: Can Craig prove that he was the victim of overzealous policing, and how can he prove that since he made a fateful decision to plead guilty?
Comments(5)
Personally, I think there is no possibly of this whole thing of simply being a misunderstanding. Larry Craig did not resist the charges at all as well as the calls to resign. If it was truly a misunderstanding, he would have fought the whole thing all the way to the end. There is no chance of him proving his innocence.
As a parent, it makes me extremely nervous that this type of exchange happens in the public restrooms.
Larry, around 8 years ago, I was in Franklin Township, NJ, at a business meeting. After, the meeting, 2 business associates from Buffalo, NY did not know the directions to their hotel, so I offered that they should follow my car and I would drive right by their hotel on my way back to Penna. In doing so, about 50 yards from the hotel driveway, a Franklin Township cop, his car hidden in a wooded driveway, pulled over the two guys and arrested the driver because the passenger had an open mixed drink in his hand. The driver was not drinking. Seeing the car stop, I stopped, turned around and went back to the scene, parked about 75 feet in front of the police car. The cop came over to me, I explained that I knew the guys and they were from out of town and showed the officer my ID. The cop told me he had to arrest the driver because the driver let the passenger have an open alcoholic beverage in the car, and since the passenger was “drinking” the cop would not allow the passenger to move the car to their hotel parking lot which was about 50 yards from the scene. I suggested that I move the car and the cop said “fine” and instructed me to wait in my car till he was finished the paperwork. As I was waiting, I never got out of my car, a second cop arrived and parked between my car and the stopped car. She asked what I was doing and I explained the situation. She then told me to move on. I explained what the other cop had told me. She then became highly agitiated and started screaming at me and ordered me out of the car. I complied. She then arrested me for “obstruction of justice”. Well, I spent the night in jail because I left my wallet and all my money in my car when I had removed same to show the cop my ID…The next morning I was let out on $250.00 bail posted by my girlfriend and had to go to court. I retained a local criminal lawyer and plead not guilty. While awaiting trial the lawyer subpoenaed the arrest records and both police car’s video tapes. Interestingly, there was no mention of me by the first cop and there was no video of either my arrest or the arrest of the 2 guys from Buffalo. I learned that it was strict PD procedure to turn on the video cams whenever they made a car stop. So I went to court thinking there was no evidence. While waiting for the Judge, my lawyer asked if I wanted to do a plea bargain with the local Prosecutor. I said “No” as I did nothing wrong. The lawyer then told me that the prosecutor was a good pal of the Judge and the prosecutor, who had the job for 20 years, has never lost a case in front of the Judge. OK…what now? The local lawyer said that if I plead guilty, the fine would be the $250.00 with the record changed to disorderly conduct and the record would be expunged. If I was found guilty, I would have to go to jail for 30 days and pay about $2,000.00 in fines and costs. I asked the lawyer if he thought I was guilty. He said “Yes”. I said this was a fine time to tell me, 6 months after the arrest and while waiting for the Judge to step up to the Bench. I reluctantly plead guilty, paid the $250. Now, 8 years later, the lawyer I retained is partners with the prosecutor’s law practice and my record was never expunged. I am still considered a criminal in New Jersey.
I don’t know if Craig is, indeed, a pervert, like former Gov McCreevey, who admits to hanging out in rest stop bathrooms, but it seems that sometimes the justice system is set up in a way to insure justice is carried out…as determined by the “locals”. Listen to the tapes…why the heck is the cop “engaging” Craig in such a lengthy converstion? The cop seemed to take alot of pleasure/gratification in twisitng Craig by the ba77s, no?
Oh, and speaking of perverts, what about your old pal, McGreevey? Here’s a governor who betrayed the public trust by hiring his sex toy ,at the expense of the taxpayers, for his own sexual gratificiation. Why isn’t McGreevey in jail? Yeah, he NOW wants to be a priest…I wonder where he will get “character” references? Names on the stall at the Molly Pitcher Plaza? Oh, that’s right, McGreevey is teaching ethics at Kean University…maybe Corzine will pay the Church to let McGreevey be a priest.
Hey larry did this bring back some memories for you? Remember your lies and deceit in the Bill Green case? Didnt you cop a plea?
JOM
Just One Man – You need serious help. Why don’t you rewrite some history.
Get a life!