Larry Craig

Larry Craig
United States Senator from Idaho
In office January 3, 1991 – January 3, 2009
Preceded by	Jim McClure
Succeeded by	Jim Risch
Chair of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee
In office January 3, 2005 – January 3, 2007
Preceded by	Arlen Specter
Succeeded by	Daniel Akaka
Chair of the Senate Aging Committee
In office January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2005
Preceded by	John Breaux
Succeeded by	Gordon H. Smith
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Idaho's 1st district
In office January 3, 1981 – January 3, 1991
Preceded by	Steve Symms
Succeeded by	Larry LaRocco
Member of the Idaho Senate from the 10th district
In office 1974–1980
Succeeded by	Roger Fairchild
Personal details
Born	Lawrence Edwin Craig (1945-07-20) July 20, 1945 (age 78) Council, Idaho, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Suzanne Thompson
Education	University of Idaho (BA)
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Army
Years of service	1970–1972
Rank	Private First Class
Unit	Army National Guard  • Idaho
Larry Craig's voice Larry Craig on nuclear energy legislation Recorded January 29, 2008

Lawrence Edwin Craig (born July 20, 1945) is an American retired politician who served in the United States Senate representing Idaho from 1991 to 2009 and in the U.S. House of Representatives representing Idaho's 1st District from 1981 to 1991.^[1] A Republican, his 28 years in Congress rank as the second-longest in Idaho history, trailing only William Borah, who served over 32 years in the Senate.

Born in Council, Idaho, Craig was raised on a ranch in Washington County. He attended the University of Idaho, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the university in 1969, and later briefly attended George Washington University before returning to Washington County in 1971 to work in his family's ranching business. Following a brief stint in the Idaho Army National Guard, Craig ran for and won a seat in the Idaho Senate in 1974, and was re-elected in 1976 and 1978, before his successful first run for Congress to represent Idaho's 1st congressional district in the House of Representatives in 1980. He won reelection four times before running for the U.S. Senate in 1990, defeating Ron J. Twilegar in the general election and winning reelection in 1996 and 2002.

On June 11, 2007, Craig was arrested for indecent behavior in a men's restroom at Minneapolis–St. Paul International Airport; he pleaded guilty to a charge of disorderly conduct in August 2007 and paid $575 in court fines and fees. The arrest remained unknown to the public until the Washington, D.C.-based newspaper Roll Call disclosed it in an article, drawing widespread public attention as well as charges of hypocrisy against Craig, as he had been an opponent of LGBT rights in the United States.^[2] Despite stating that he was not and never had been homosexual, Craig announced, on September 1, 2007, that he would resign from the Senate, effective September 30, 2007, but later reversed this decision and decided to finish the remainder of his term, although he chose not to run for re-election in 2008.^[3]

He was succeeded by Lieutenant Governor and former Governor Jim Risch, who won the seat in the 2008 election.^[4] Craig subsequently co-founded the consulting firm New West Strategies and became a lobbyist.^[5][6] Craig has been a member of the board of directors of the National Rifle Association of America since 1983.^[7][8][9] Craig was selected for induction into the Idaho Hall of Fame in 2007, but was not inducted.^{[10][11][12][13]}