Thinking through the Craig scandal:

1. Judging from the police report, the circumstances, the reaction, and the Senator's murky rumored past, it is reasonable to conclude that Larry Craig was cruising the Minneapolis airport for a homosexual encounter of the fast and anonymous variety.

2. Having said that, the evidence is pretty thin. While I have no doubt that the police officer's sense of what transpired is correct (see #1), the details are pretty sketchy. There is no DNA, no video, no corroborating witnesses, and no confession. In an era of Court TV in which numerous "Dream Teams" have rescued the rich and powerful from the long arm of the law, it is hard to imagine that the actual case against Craig could get very far.

3. Of course, the strength of the evidence was not the point. Craig was right to understand from the very moment he saw that badge appear under his stall that his career was in mortal jeopardy. His decision to keep the incident quiet and hope it went away appears incredibly naive and unrealistic to us now, but it was probably his best hope. No matter how flimsy the evidence in this case--he could not afford to risk public exposure. He must have been desperate and on the verge of panic--but, in retrospect, he probably would not have fared any better with any alternative course of action.

4. What about Barney Frank? Apples & Oranges. It is true that a similar Barney Frank incident would not make much noise or impact. Rush would get some mileage out of it. A few internet jokes would make the rounds. But, for the most part, a similar event for Congressman Frank would be a non-story. Why? Frank makes no secret about his proclivities. Barney Frank soliciting an undercover police officer in a men's restroom would surprise us no more than Lindsey Lohan driving drunk. Having said that, cheerleaders for the Democrats love this story. Moreover, there is an extra zest to much of the mainstream media reporting that I doubt would be there if this was a similarly positioned Democrat.

5. An MSM article of faith in all this has been "hypocrisy" and "self-loathing." The standard line: "Craig has been a consistent opponent of gay rights." By that they mean that Craig has supported the marriage amendment, voted for the DOMA, and championed various other pieces of legislation in support of traditional heterosexual marriage.

Is that really hypocritical?

The accusation of "hypocrisy" is based on the assumption that every honest person and/or politician with same-sex inclinations should embrace the gay lifestyle and support "gay civil rights." More sloppy thinking based on a priori reasoning, which declares same-sex marriage and homosexual culture on a par with heterosexuality in terms of collective good. Certainly, folks who subscribe to this view have every right to argue their case in the public square, but the jury is still out. At the very least, we can say that reasonable people continue to disagree on this issue.

In a nutshell, a person who chooses to resist same-sex urges ought to have the right to advocate public policy positions that promote heterosexuality over homosexuality as a better choice for society.

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PS: For your file marked "more analysis I thought I would never read in a serious newspaper," the serially inappropriate Dana Milbank, Washington Post political columnist, has a lot of fun at the expense of Larry Craig and other stuffy, hypocritical Republicans here.