[davidosborne]

In case you missed this..... Judge for yourself.. is he guilty or not?

[davidosborne]

In case you missed this..... Judge for yourself.. is he guilty or not?

[crazyshrink]

Thanks for the post. Even though it was posted earlier today, some of us dont listen to the radio, tv, or get on here til later.

[KingKenrod]

He obviously tried a pick up, but I don’t believe his actions constituted enough for an arrest or charge. Secret hand signals and foot tapping may be suspicious but they’re hardly illegal. The senator should have been arrested if he agreed to have public sex or exposed himself or agreed to have sex for money.

One thing that isn’t clear to me is was is there an allegation of soliciting prostitution here? Agreeing to have sex for money is illegal, but simply agreeing to have sex is not. The key here is whether the Senator planned to have sex in public (in the bathroom) or planned to pick a guy up and go to a hotel or other private place. That may be immoral, but it ain’t illegal.

[Otho]

The only way, IMO, for Craig to stay in the Senate is for him to switch parties & become a RAT. Gay RATs get praised and are reelected.

[WannabeTurk]

Can we STOP with the $@#!ing obsession with some queer who flirted in the toilet? Hillary gets caught yet again accepting suspect money from a Chinese guy who is a convicted felon and a fugitive from justice, yet all anyone is concerned about is some guy tapping his toes and fingers in the toilet. This is pathetic. Say hello to President Hillary for the next 8 years. This a disgrace...

[TheSpottedOwl]

I heard it on Fox News this evening. The whole thing is bizarre. It would appear to be a set up. First Craig has to wait for an available stall. Who hasn’t? He uses the facility, and is handed a card from the police department?

Craig should have said the following 4 words, “I want my attorney”.

Frankly I don’t care if he’s gay. It doesn’t sound like he was cruising, though.

[counterpunch]

Craig obviously knew what he was doing from how he interacted with the officer during the recording.
If he wasn’t there trolling for gay toilet sex then he would have said “what the hell are you talking about? Why are you harassing me?”

Instead he tried to give alternate explanations for what most people would consider arbitrary actions like only someone who knew their significance could.

However, given the arbitrary nature of the actions in question, I cannot see how they could by themselves constitute a crime. The officer jumped the gun on the bust. He needed to take it far enough to get a verbal solicitation. He didn’t, and that is what leaves open some reasonable doubt.

[Skip Ripley]

Larry...if you’ve touched another man’s genitals and the phrase “turn your head and cough” isn’t part of the conversation...you’re gay

[R. Scott]

I listened to this one, and watched the interrogation a couple times yesterday on the news. I don’t find anything really incriminating. It appears the case comes down to the cop’s word against the accused. The officer even changed his story once during the interrogation (left hand, right hand).
This officer’s sole job is busting homosexuals in public restrooms. If he wants to be promoted he must prove he’s on the job and that means keeping his arrest and conviction numbers up. Would that be an incentive to fabricate? Most LEOS are honest on the job. Others become caught up in the us vs them mentality.
As an aside - now that I know that having the toe of your shoe slide under the stall partition is a signal for homosexual sex I will have to watch it. It has happened occasionally when my right knee locks up.

[A.A. Cunningham]

Sen. Craig interview with Minneapolis police officer released (with transcript)

[isthisnickcool]

What do Martha Stewart, Scooter Libby, the Duke Lacrosse players and this Craig guy have in common? They all have been brought in to the criminal justice system by law enforcement after they broke no specific law but because they were presumed to have lied to law enforcement. This is nothing new except in this case Craig AGREED that he was guilty. IMHO that was not a smart thing for him to do but now he must deal with it. But that only applies to what he agreed he was guilty of and to nothing else. He is innocent of anything else but unfortunately unlike Martha, Libby and the Duke kids he is in politics and the rules are different. The bottom line is that he is toast and his political career is over. And that’s his fault. He is a US Senator and MAKES laws. He should know better than to do what he did in even speaking with the cops after the “incident”.

[Caramelgal]

OFFICER: All right. I know I can bring you to jail, but that's not my goal here, okay? (inaudible)
CRAIG: Don't do that. You. You.
OFFICER: I'm not going to bring you to jail.
CRAIG: You solicited me.

I think that was a big mistake. Craig tried to turn it around and accuse the cop of solicitation. I imagine the cop didn’t like that very much and that might have made the cop a bit hostile in the interview and given that exchange, I think the cop showed great restraint.

OFFICER: Have you been “successful” in these bathrooms here before?
CRAIG: I go to that bathroom regularly.
OFFICER: I mean for any type of other activities.
CRAIG: No. Absolutely not. I don't “see” activity in bathrooms.

Now that was a funny exchange. Did the Senator say “see” or “seek” because there is a way different connotation depending on which word he really used.

OFFICER: Well, you're not being truthful with me, I'm kinda disappointed in you Senator. I'm real disappointed in your right now. Okay, I'm not, just so you know, just like everybody, I, I, I, treat with dignity. I try to pull them away from the situation…I just, I just. I guess, I guess I'm gonna say I'm just disappointed in you sir. I'm just really am. I expect this from the guy that we get out of the hood. I mean people vote for you… Embarrassing, embarrassing. No wonder why we're going down the tubes….

He sure said a mouthful - ;),

Reality Check:

“Hooking up” for sex, heterosexual or homosexual, is not a crime nor should it be a crime. Go to any bar or nightclub on a Friday or Saturday night and you will observe a lot of subtle and some not so subtle body language and signals between people (many of them hetero) “seeking” to “go home” with somebody.

It is however criminal to solicit sex for money (there’s no proof of that here) and it is a crime to have sex in public places (but no actual sex acts occurred here either). How many hetero couples, even married couples have joined the “Mile High Club”. Personally I don’t find a public toilet stall particularly “romantic” – a private hot tub or shower?....never mind, I digress.

Since there was no actual sex act or an offer of an exchange of money for sex, I think the cop should have given the Senator a “stern” warning and a “slap” on the wrist. Even if Craig was cruising, I don’t think his actions warranted an arrest. Do I think Craig is a sleaze and a hypocrite? Yea!

The cop seemed to be very aware that Craig was a Senator. Did that mean the cop had some agenda? Was it entrapment? It’s not in the transcript but I read and heard from various sources that as soon as the cop confronted Craig, he (Craig) handed the cop his Senatorial business card as a “Don’t You Know Who I Am?” and a “Get Out of Jail Free Card”. If true, I think the cop might have let him go with a warning had the Senator not done that, but if Craig tried to invoke some sort of Senatorial Privilege he deserved to be arrested.

Bottom line is that once Craig was read his rights, he should have asked for a lawyer and he should have shut up. Craig’s whiney and desperate attempt at refuting what happened and arguing with the cop and then pleading guilty, doesn’t help his cause one bit.

I have more respect for a person who is Gay and doesn’t try to hide it, than I do for a man who leads a “secret” life, deceiving his wife and family and constituents.

[PJ-Comix]

Check it out. There is now hidden camera VIDEO of the toilet stall incident.