The U.S. Senate
Ethics Committee says Idaho senator Larry Craig acted
improperly in connection with a men's room sex sting last
year and had brought discredit on the Senate.
In a letter to
the Republican senator, the ethics panel said Craig's
attempt to withdraw his guilty plea after his arrest at an
airport in Minnesota was an effort to evade legal
consequences of his actions.
Craig's actions
constitute ''improper conduct which has reflected
discreditably on the Senate,'' the letter said.
In an e-mailed
statement, Craig told the Associated Press he disagreed
with the ethics panel's action.
''While I am
disappointed and strongly disagree with the conclusions
reached by the Senate Ethics Committee, from the outset I
have encouraged the committee to act in a timely
fashion, and they have done so. I will continue to
serve the people of Idaho,'' he said.
The six members
of the committee -- three Democrats, three Republicans --
told Craig they believed he ''committed the offense to which
you pled guilty'' and that ''you entered your plea
knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently.''
The panel said
Craig tried to remove his guilty plea only after his
attempts to avoid public disclosure had failed.
''Your claims to
the court ... to the effect that your guilty plea
resulted from improper pressure or coercion, or that you did
not, as a legal matter, know what you were doing when
you pled guilty do not appear credible,'' the letter
said.
The panel also
said Craig should have received permission from the ethics
panel before using campaign money to pay his legal bills.
Craig, who is not running for reelection, has spent
more than $213,000 in campaign money for legal expense
and public relations work in the aftermath of his
arrest and conviction last summer.
The committee
said it had reached no conclusion about whether use of
campaign funds was proper, but it said ''it is clear that
you never sought the committee's approval, as
required,'' to use the money for legal expenses.
Any future use of
campaign money for legal bills will be seen as
''demonstrating your continuing disregard of ethics
requirements,'' the ethics committee wrote in its
three-page letter.
The panel also
admonished Craig for showing the arresting officer a
business card that identified him as a U.S. senator. Craig
has been reported to have told the officer at the
time, ''What do you think about that?''
The committee
wrote, ''You knew or should have known that a reasonable
person in the position of the arresting officer could view
your action and statement as an improper attempt by
you to use your position and status ... to receive
special and favorable treatment.''
Democratic
senator Barbara Boxer, chairwoman of the ethics panel, would
not comment. A spokeswoman said the panel's letter of
admonition cannot be appealed.
The ethics panel
took no further action against Craig.
Craig, a
three-term Republican, pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct
in August after he was accused of soliciting sex in a
bathroom at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International
Airport in June.
After the matter
became public, Craig tried to withdraw his plea. A judge
in Minnesota refused, saying Craig's plea ''was accurate,
voluntary, and intelligent, and ... supported by the
evidence.'' Craig has appealed that ruling to the
Minnesota court of appeals.
Senate
Republicans demanded the ethics investigation after news
broke of Craig's conviction last August. Craig first
promised to resign September 30, then reversed his
decision. He now says he will stay in office until his
term expires in January.
Craig has said an
undercover police officer misinterpreted his foot and
hand movements as signals that he wanted sex.
Craig, who lost
several Republican leadership positions on Senate
committees and subcommittees after the scandal, has been
working with Boxer and other members of the Senate's
environment committee on a global warming bill and
other matters.
Besides Boxer,
the letter is signed by Republican senator John Cornyn,
the panel's vice chairman, and Democratic senators Mark
Pryor and Ken Salazar and Republican senators Pat
Roberts and Johnny Isakson. (Matthew Daly, AP)
