Larry Craig Going Down

There is an inevitability about this.

Republicans want Larry Craig to resign NOW.

WASHINGTON -- Idaho Sen. Larry Craig is considering resigning, Republican officials said Friday, after days of public and private pressure stemming from his arrest in June in a police undercover operation at an airport men's room.

Craig pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct on Aug. 1, and while he has since said he did nothing wrong, the episode has roiled the Republican party and produced numerous calls for him to step down.

As a measure of the pressure Craig faces, party officials said a statement had been drafted at Republican Party headquarters calling for the third-term senator to resign. It was not issued, these officials said, in response to concerns that it might complicate quiet efforts under way to persuade the 62-year-old lawmaker to give up his seat.

Any resignation would clear the way for Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter, a Republican, to name a replacement who would serve until the end of Craig's current term in 2009. Lt. Gov. James Risch and Rep. Mike Simpson were among the possible replacements, according to the GOP officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

There's no way that Craig can salvage his political career.

It's over.

He should resign.

If Craig were a Democrat, everything would be different. They would be circling the wagons to protect him and the lib media would assist. Craig would be embraced.

But Craig is a Republican. Republicans don't stay in office after incidents like this.