Senator denies misconduct

Seeking to salvage his reputation and quell the media storm stirred by his guilty plea to disorderly conduct charges, Sen. Larry E. Craig of Idaho on Tuesday denied making a sexual advance to an undercover officer in a men’s room.

“I am not gay and never have been,” the Republican lawmaker declared at a Boise news conference with his wife, Suzanne, at his side.

But even as he denied wrongdoing, Senate GOP leaders called for an ethics investigation. His case sent shock waves through Republican circles here and in his home state. Already, Craig was under intense pressure to give up the seat he has held since 1991 rather than risk handing Democrats what has been a safe seat in a solidly red state.

Craig said that he would announce next month whether he would seek reelection.

“This is one more headache that Republicans don’t need,” said Jennifer Duffy, Senate race analyst for the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.

At the news conference, Craig, a leading voice on issues affecting the West, apologized for his handling of the incident, saying he regretted his plea.

“It is clear, though, that through my actions I have brought a cloud over Idaho. For that, I ask the people of Idaho for their forgiveness,” he said.

The disorderly conduct charge grew out of a June incident at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in which an officer investigating lewd-conduct complaints arrested Craig on suspicion of making sexual advances.

The arrest and the senator’s subsequent guilty plea became public Monday, when it was reported by the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call.

Craig, 62, was ordered to pay $575 in fines and fees and given one year’s probation.

Though the senator denied being gay, it was not the first time he has confronted sexually related accusations. In 1982, when he was in the House, he denied involvement in a congressional page sex scandal.

On Tuesday, Craig said that he “overreacted and made a poor decision” in responding to the arrest without seeking counsel from an attorney, staff, friends or family in hopes of “making it go away.” Craig said he had hired an attorney to examine the case.

“I did nothing wrong,” he said, reading from a statement.

He blamed his state of mind at the time on the Idaho Statesman, the state’s leading newspaper, which he said for eight months had “relentlessly and viciously harassed” him and his family.

A front-page headline in the Statesman on Tuesday read, “Men’s room arrest reopens questions about Sen. Larry Craig.” The lengthy story reported on sexually related accusations against Craig dating back to his college days.

Calling the paper’s campaign “a witch hunt,” Craig said the paper’s investigation had fueled unfounded rumors in Idaho about his sexual orientation.

Bill Manny, Idaho Statesman managing editor, responded in an e-mail, “We worked hard and behaved responsibly, not publishing a story until it was ready. We didn’t print anything until the senator pleaded guilty. Our story outlined what we’ve done and it speaks for itself.”

The pressure for Craig to retire at the end of his term or resign sooner was building Tuesday as his arrest inspired frenzied coverage on blogs and cable television. The mug shot from Craig’s arrest was broadcast on CNN accompanied by the headline: “Senator’s Bathroom Bust.” And the detailed arrest report was widely available on the Internet.

Senate Republican leaders, calling the incident a “serious matter,” asked for an Ethics Committee investigation. “In the meantime, leadership is examining other aspects of the case to determine if additional action is required,” the GOP leaders said in a statement.

Boise radio station KBOI-AM received a surprising number of callers who want Craig out of office, said “Idaho Talks Live” host Chris Walton, not because of his arrest, but because of his support for a controversial immigration bill. Craig has been a consistent supporter of immigration bills that conservative Republicans have derided as “amnesty” because they would allow illegal immigrants to eventually gain citizenship.

“That was the opinion of about half,” Walton said. “The other half were upset that someone -- anyone -- has embarrassed Idaho again, or they were disgusted with his apparent hypocrisy, since his stand has always been against gay marriage and other recognition of gay rights.”

Greg Smith, an Idaho pollster who has worked for Craig, said it was “almost certain” the senator would not seek reelection.

David G. Adler, a political science professor at Idaho State University, said Craig’s swift resignation as co-chair of Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign in Idaho provided a “good measure of the fever that has been inflicted.”

Patrick Sammon, president of the Log Cabin Republicans, the largest organization for gays in the GOP, said Craig’s ability to continue serving was “in serious doubt.”

“He has violated the public trust, not just with his inappropriate and illegal behavior, but in the subsequent explanation of his actions,” Sammon said.

If Craig resigns, Republican Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter would appoint a successor, most likely a Republican, to serve the remainder of the term.

A former Democratic congressman, Larry LaRocco, is campaigning to replace Craig. LaRocco was elected to the House in 1990 but lost the seat in the 1994 GOP takeover.

LaRocco said he believed a Democrat could win even though none had been elected to the Senate from Idaho since Frank Church, who lost the seat in 1980. “People are in a plate-throwing mood out here, regardless of what happened with Larry Craig,” LaRocco said.

James E. Risch, who defeated LaRocco last year to become lieutenant governor, is mentioned as a likely Republican candidate if Craig bows out. Another possible Republican candidate is Rep. Mike Simpson.

In his news conference, Craig did not respond to the police report on the incident and declined to take questions.

According to the report, an undercover officer entered a stall and saw Craig standing outside for about two minutes.

“Craig would look down at his hands, fidget with his fingers and then look through the crack into my stall again,” Sgt. Dave Karsnia wrote in the report.

The officer said that Craig entered the next stall and placed his roller bag against the door. “My experience has shown that individuals engaging in lewd conduct use their bags to block the view from the front of their stall,” the officer wrote.

The officer said that Craig tapped his right foot, “a signal used by persons wishing to engage in lewd conduct.”

The presence of others in the restroom “did not seem to deter Craig as he moved his right foot so that it touched the side of my left foot which was within my stall area.”

The officer said he saw Craig “swipe his hand under the stall divider for a few seconds.”

According to the report, Craig later handed the officer a business card that identified him as a senator, saying, “What do you think about that?”

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richard.simon@latimes.com