Larry Craig
Larry Edwin Craig (born
July 20,
1945 in
Midvale,
Idaho) is the senior
United States Senator from Idaho. He is a member of the
Republican Party.
Craig was born and educated in Idaho. He was elected to the
Idaho Legislature in
1974, serving in the Idaho State Senate. By this time he was also a
farmer and
rancher. In
1969, he earned a
B.A. from the
University of Idaho, where he served as Student Body President and was a member of the
Delta Chi fraternity. He pursued graduate studies before returning to the family ranching business in
1971.
Craig was reelected to the Idaho State Senate in
1976 and
1978. In
1980, he was elected to an open seat
United States House of Representatives from the
Idaho First Congressional District, succeeding
Steve Symms. of which he was a member from
1981 until
1991, being reelected every two years. During his tenure as a member of the House of Representatives, he strongly supported the Balanced Budget Amendment and
President Reagan's push to expand vocational education.
In
1990, Craig announced his candidacy for the United States Senate seat vacated by the retiring
Jim McClure. Craig defeated Idaho Attorney General
Jim Jones in the Republican primary and former state legislator
Ron J. Twilegar in the general election. Craig was reelected in
1996 and
2002.
Craig was chairman of the Republican Policy Committee from 1997 until 2003. He then became chairman of the Special Committee on Aging. He is currently chairman of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. He is most noted for his well-reasoned and conservative approach to issues.
He is a long-time, leading advocate for a
Balanced Budget Amendment to the
U.S. Constitution.
In addition to his job as a Senator, he is on the Board of Directors of the
National Rifle Association.
Senator Larry Craig attempted to amend the
Iraq War supplemental bill with AgJOBS bill (S. 359). The AgJOBS amendment would have granted legal status to roughly 500,000 to 1 million
illegal immigrants in farm work. However, Sen. Craig was only able to garner 53 of the 60 votes needed for the amendment. 60 votes were needed instead of the usual 51 because the amendment was not relevant to the matter at hand. He is a supporter of President Bush's Guest-Worker Program. A version of the AgJOBS bill legislation is included in the Senate-passed immigration reform bill.
On December 16th, 2005, Craig voted against a cloture vote on the
USA PATRIOT Act, on a vote of 52-47. On December 21st, 2005, Craig successfully negotiated a six-month extension of the
USA PATRIOT Act so concerns about civil liberties could be further addressed.
On February 9, 2006, Craig announced an agreement between himself, the White House, and fellow Senators
John E. Sununu,
Arlen Specter,
Lisa Murkowski,
Chuck Hagel, and
Richard Durbin to reauthorize the
USA PATRIOT Act.
Including his service in the House of Representatives, as of
2006 Craig is the third-longest serving member of the United States Congress in Idaho history, trailing only
Burton L. French and
William E. Borah. Craig will pass French to take second place in January
2007. If reeelected in
2008 Craig would be scheduled to pass Borah in November
2013.
In
2000 Craig formed a
barbershop quartet called
The Singing Senators with Senators
Trent Lott,
John Ashcroft, and
James Jeffords.
Prior to the nomination of Idaho Governor
Dirk Kempthorne, Craig had been mentioned as a possible contender to succeed
Gale Norton as
United States Secretary of the Interior in March,
2006. [
1]
*
Official website*
Congressional Biography*
record maintained by the Washington Post
