Craig returns to the Hill

Just when the GOP was preparing for a good week on Tuesday — touting a new attorney general pick and positive testimony on the war — Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) made his surprise return to Capitol Hill.

Craig ducked into the Republican policy lunch hours after making an unexpected return to the Capitol 12 days before his likely resignation. Senators and aides were caught off-guard by the embattled conservative’s appearance in a chamber where many had expected the stigma of a gay sex sting arrest to keep Craig away for good.

{mosads}“Obviously he wants to clear his name, and that’s a decision he has to make,” said Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.). Summing up Congress’s consensus on Craig, he added: “It takes a lot of moxie to come back to this place.”

Craig’s homecoming began in a morning encounter near the members’ dining room, where he crossed paths with a surprised but cordial Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). If Graham was jarred by the arrival of Craig, a onetime ally whom most Republicans have given up for dead politically, he did not show it.

“I like Larry,” Graham told reporters. “It’s not a personal thing.”

The decision to return was undoubtedly personal for Craig. He has vowed to reverse an Aug. 8 guilty plea that began with a Minneapolis airport police officer’s allegation of sexual solicitation and ended with a 27-year career in tatters. To the phalanx of reporters that trailed him throughout the day, Craig offered a few clues to his fate.

Asked whether he was optimistic about the legal claim that his quick plea amounted to “manifest injustice,” Craig replied, “I have no opinion, but I’d like to be.” A hearing on his case is slated for Sept. 26 in Edina, Minn.

Craig also dismissed speculation that his presence in the Senate, where he cast three votes Tuesday, amounted to a signal that he would not adhere to a planned Sept. 30 resignation.

“He is here representing Idaho, working on transition, and meeting with his legal team,” Craig spokesman Dan Whiting said.

Craig called Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) before he showed up in the chamber, a GOP aide confirmed. But few senior Republicans were eager to discuss how they received Craig, who made brief remarks at lunch that Whiting said were not prepared in advance.

Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), chairman of the GOP conference, was asked what Craig told him during an encounter on the floor. “Larry Craig walked over to me, and was talking to me about some procedural issues,” Kyl said. “We had a conversation. He’s a member of the Senate and so am I.”

Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott (R-Miss.), whom Craig supported during his 2002 fight to stay in leadership, batted questions away. “I think the Ethics Committee’s going to review this matter — see y’all!” said Lott with a sunny smile.
Sen. Mel Martinez (Fla.), chairman of the national Republican Party that reportedly helped push Craig toward stepping aside, declined to comment. So did Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who urged Craig to resign days after the Idahoan’s arrest became public last month.

Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.), who also quickly called for Craig’s ouster, was less tight-lipped.

“I accept him as a colleague,” Coleman said, emphasizing that the resignation he urged still seems imminent. “It’s fine for this month.”

Sen. John Cornyn (Texas), vice chairman of the GOP conference, has stayed mum on the scandal due to the Ethics Committee investigation he may have to help steer against Craig if the Idahoan hangs on to his seat. But Cornyn told reporters that he had a kind word for Craig on Tuesday, telling him, “My family and I are praying for you.”

As whispers and raised eyebrows followed Craig’s every move, his strongest supporter also drew even more attention. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) has repeatedly urged Craig to rehabilitate his standing in court and in Congress, and Tuesday was no exception.

Craig and Specter hailed each other off the floor, shaking hands to the popping of flashbulbs. “Nice to see you smiling,” the Pennsylvanian and former prosecutor told Craig.

“It’s good to be back,” Craig told Specter. Later, the Judiciary Committee’s senior Republican suggested that Republicans could open their arms to their longtime colleague now that “the initial shock has worn off.”

“There’s been a lot of favorable talk about Larry in the cloakroom, let me put it that way,” Specter said.

Meanwhile, Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter (R) has started interviewing possible replacements for Craig, the Associated Press reported Tuesday.

Manu Raju contributed to this report.