He's back! Larry Craig returns to the Senate
Sen. Larry Craig on Capitol Hill on September 18, 2007. AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke.
by Jill Zuckman
A little more than two weeks after announcing he would resign from Congress following a guilty plea arising from a bathroom sex scandal, Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) walked back into the Senate chamber Tuesday and cast two votes.
Craig, who is trying to undo his plea and fight the charges against him, spoke to a few colleagues on the floor, but mostly stood in the back of the chamber on the Republican side of the aisle. Neither Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) nor Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), spoke to him. Both have been highly critical of Craig, with McConnell calling his actions "unforgivable."
At 12:40 p.m., Craig strode out of the chamber, walking briskly down the hall to the Mansfield room for lunch with his Republican colleagues.
Asked if his presence meant he would not resign, Craig said, "No, not at all."
He said he was back in Washington to work in his office and spend time with staff. Craig originally announced he would resign as of Sept. 30th, but then seemed to suggest that he might not resign at all.
Asked if he was optimistic about his chances to get his guilty plea overturned, Craig said, "I don’t have an opinion on it," and then shut the door of the Mansfield room behind him.