LARRY CRAIG IS HALL OF FAME BOUND BUT HELEN CHENOWETH IS SNUBBED AGAIN

Senator Craig prepares for the big induction-- if not a coming out party

Forget for a minute that an actual statesman from Idaho, Senator Frank Church, has been inducted into the Idaho Hall of Fame. The announcement that Wide Stance Larry is an inductee this year met with howls of disapproval in some circles-- and howls of laughter in others. All I can say is, what about Helen Chenoweth, the original Mean Jean Schmidt? I mean for all the talk about Larry Craig being the sworn enemy of salmon, it was, after all, the slutty Congresswoman Chenoweth who served endangered species at her fundraisers! And forget for a moment that both poet Ezra Pound and actress Lana Turner have been included; what about Richard Bulter, founder of the Aryan Nations and Church of Jesus Christ Christian and one of the kooks who defines Idaho politics?

So even as virtually all of his "Christian" right wing colleagues in the Senate are snubbing him and demanding he resign, he's picking out new clothes for his induction ceremony. Republicans, of course, are worried that Craig's constant and unrelenting news coverage will keep reminding voters that they're not just the Party of Selfishness, Greed, Hatred and Bigotry but also the Party of Hypocrisy and Toilet Trawlers. A new right-wing poll released today does not auger well for the GOP. For instance:

Will the Craig scandal hurt Republicans at the next election in 2008?

Help Republicans: 2 percent
Hurt Republicans: 51 percent
No Difference: 47 percent

Yesterday Bob Novak even exposed Senate Republicans for knowing about Craig's homosexuality and about his toilet cruising and for covering up for him... for years-- just the way their House colleagues did for child predator Mark Foley (R-FL). Can you imagine South Carolina or Kentucky inducting Lindsey Graham or Mitch McConnell into their Halls of Fame once they get outed? Hold tight.

Luckily, Bill Clinton is from enlightened Arkansas, not from Idaho: