Bloggers are currently covering the Internet with writings about Senator Larry Craig (R-ID). The charges against him and his denials are well known, so I’ll skip all that and just proceed.
Back when I was just a little right-wing extremist, Larry Craig was one of my heroes. We’re talking 1983-86 here. I knew nothing about him personally. I only knew that he voted the way I wished all legislators would vote. To my knowledge, he has continued to vote that way.
But a public servant has a position of leadership and responsibility that goes beyond the way he votes. As a representative, he stands in the place of his constituents. That’s why we have ethics committees in the House and Senate. Soliciting sex in a washroom is not consistent with public office.
I never knew Craig as a moral example, nor did I know him to go around telling others how immoral they are. He voted in ways that are good for America, even if he lived in a way that wasn’t. He is a liar (for denying it), but I don’t see him as a hypocrite. Still, he needs to be out of office, along with a slew of others who are just like him or worse.
