Washington – Sen. Larry Craig said Wednesday that he will remain in office while a Minnesota judge considers his bid to withdraw a guilty plea, overturning the senator’s previous statements of intent to resign by Sunday.
The Idaho Republican said he will stay in office “for now,” but people close to him said he will remain until the judge rules. Hennepin County Judge Charles Porter said he probably won’t decide the matter until next month.
Craig, who had planned to seek a fourth term next year, pleaded guilty in August to disorderly conduct following a June 11 sting operation in a men’s room at the Minneapolis airport.
Craig’s comments Wednesday were greeted with chilly silence from Senate Republican leaders who have made it clear they wish he would step down and let Idaho’s GOP governor name a replacement. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., told reporters he had nothing to add to previous statements in which he said he thought Craig made the right decision on Sept. 1, when he announced his intention to resign by the month’s end.
Craig did not attend Wednesday’s hearing in Minneapolis before Porter. His lawyer, Billy Martin, acknowledged the difficulty of getting the guilty plea withdrawn.
Craig has said he panicked and foolishly pleaded guilty without consulting a lawyer, in part because an Idaho newspaper had been pursuing claims he is gay. Craig says he is not gay.
