Craig surrendering to pressure to quit

WASHINGTON — Sen. Larry E. Craig, R-Idaho, plans to resign his seat today after Republican leaders put intense pressure on him to leave in the aftermath of an undercover sex sting, Republican Party officials said Friday.

Through intermediaries and unusually harsh public statements and actions, party officials made it clear they wanted Craig to quit before Congress returns from its summer recess next week, hoping to quickly

conclude an embarrassing episode that threatened to complicate an already difficult election cycle for Senate Republicans.

Republican Party officials said Friday evening that they had been notified of Craig's intention to give up his seat as of Sept. 30 and that Gov. C.L. Otter, a Republican, would name a replacement.

The disclosure of Craig's guilty plea to a misdemeanor charge resulting from his arrest in the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in early June was not the only political setback suffered by Republicans this week. On Friday, Sen. John Warner, R-Va., the former Navy secretary and an influential party voice on military policy, announced in Charlottesville that he would not seek a sixth term in 2008, giving Democrats a better chance at that seat.

Late Friday, Craig's office scheduled a public announcement for this morning in Boise, but aides would not publicly disclose his plans. National Republican officials, in what appeared to be a coordinated message, left no doubt what they would prefer.

For four days, Republican officials engaged in an almost unprecedented campaign to persuade Craig to step down. Speaking to reporters in his home state of Kentucky, Sen. Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader, on Thursday called Craig's conduct "unforgivable."

Sen. John Ensign of Nevada, who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, raised the prospect of public ethics hearings should Craig remain in office.

Senators also privately discussed the idea of withholding any political support from Craig should he try to run for re-election, according to aides.

Officials at the Republican National Committee, the center of party political operations, readied a news release calling for Craig to resign but withheld it after they learned that Idaho Republicans, including representatives of the governor's office, were interceding with representatives of Craig to urge him to step down.