BOISE, Idaho, Aug. 31 — If Senator Larry E. Craig resigns Saturday as expected amid accusations that he solicited sex in an airport restroom, his successor will be chosen by a fellow Republican who knows better than most what voters in this deeply conservative state will tolerate when it comes to the private behavior of public officials.
Gov. C. L. Otter, known as Butch, was arrested, and eventually convicted, on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol when he was lieutenant governor in 1992. Just days before, he also entered — and won — the Mr. Tight Jeans contest at the Rockin’ Rodeo bar here in the state capital. The next year, he went through a very public divorce.
Until Mr. Craig scheduled a news conference on Saturday, aides to Mr. Otter, a conservative with an unpredictable libertarian streak, said no meetings had been held or plans been made for what to do if Mr. Craig resigned.
Nonetheless, Mr. Otter faced increased speculation over who he might appoint to fill the Craig seat. Though there seems no doubt the choice would be a Republican, many people say that unlike in other states, where political succession can be choreographed, it is far from sure that Mr. Otter will keep to whatever game plan state Republican Party leaders may propose.
Would Mr. Otter appoint the lieutenant governor, James E. Risch, a pragmatic conservative who deferred to Mr. Otter in the governor’s race last year but is not a confidant? How about his friend and former colleague Representative Mike Simpson, perhaps a bit more aligned with Mr. Otter? Maybe it could be a place holder — like Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne, a former Idaho governor and senator — who would allow someone else to run when Mr. Craig’s term expires in January 2009.
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http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/01/us/politics/01idaho.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin
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