Why Craig Should Resign.

By this point most people are aware of Senator Larry Craig's (R-Idaho) arrest and conviction in Minneapolis for trolling for sex in the men's bathroom at the airport there. A quick summary:

Craig was arrested for sitting in the stall in the men's bathroom at the Minneapolis airport for sending "signals" to an undercover police officer in the next stall over. I have read the arrest report. As a municipal prosecutor, I can say with absolute certainty that I would have "no filed" this case had I read that report. That means I would not have allowed it go forward - it was that bad.

Nonetheless, Craig pleaded guilty. Some liberal radio talk-show hosts have claimed that Craig pleaded guilty the same day he was arrested, then flew to D.C. to cast some vote. They are lying. (As opposed to wrong - anybody who read the arrest report (dated June 12) and the guilty plea (signed August 1) would have immediately noticed they were a month apart).

In any event, Craig's claim that he didn't have enough time to contemplate the ramification of his decision, that he felt rushed, is complete crap. He mailed his freakin' plea petition, which he or an attorney drafted - there was no rush.

It is immaterial that Craig was arrested on this stupid, b.s. charge. It is also immaterial that he pleaded guilty. It is further immaterial whether he is gay or, if you believe his bizarre press conference, is not gay. None of that matters - yet it is all that the media are talking about. That, of course, is because the media are essentially a collective of idiots who pander to the lowest-common denominator.

No, the reason Craig should resign is quite simple - he is not qualified to be a United States Senator. Now, techinically speaking, he is qualified. The only requirements are age and residency. He meets both.

However, he is not intellectually qualified. He is claiming that he did not understand the ramifications of his guilty plea and that he did not understand what he was doing when he entered it. Aside from the rather explicit and detailed explanation found in the plea petition, this is not rocket science. I deal often with people of far lessor capacity (supposedly) who clearly understand the plea petition and what it means to plead guilty. So he can't understand the basics of the American criminal justice system, yet he is entrusted to understand and vote on the most complicated legislation this nation has to offer. Seriously?

Simply put, anybody who can't understand a simple misdemeanor guilty plea has no business being in the Senate. And why nobody has caught on to this yet is entirely beyond me - unless the reality is that EVERYBODY in the Senate (and most of the media) are also too stupid to grasp the significance of a misdemeanor guilty plea.