Craig's Plea Withdrawal Denied

Lovechildren, gay affairs, and hookers, oh my!

(NEWSER) - From Eliot Spitzer’s $80,000 worth of prostitute action to Mark Sanford “hiking the Appalachian trail,” this decade has been ripe with political sex scandals. The Frisky picks the juiciest. Some of the slightly-lesser-discussed affairs:

• Mike Duvall: A self-described “family values warrior” in the California State Assembly spilled about his mistress—while miked—meaning that a whole bunch of politicians got to hear about his propensity for “spanking her.”

Ill. senator hopes to box in white Dems for 2010 campaign

(NEWSER) - Roland Burris doesn’t have much support in Washington or money in his war chest for a reelection bid, but he retains one reliable weapon, Politico reports: the race card. As controversy over his appointment has reemerged, Burris hasn’t hesitated to chalk it up to racial politics. A Burris consultant says “race has something to do with” the Illinois senator’s chilly reception in DC. More»

Lawyers say state's top court would likely pass on reviewing former senator's case

(NEWSER) - The deadline for appealing his case to the Minnesota Supreme Court passes today, and Larry Craig will not seek a review, Fox affiliate KMSP-TV reports. The former Idaho senator was arrested last year in a Minneapolis airport sex sting, and sought to void his conviction. An appeals court ruled against him, and Craig’s lawyers said the Supreme Court would likely pass, the AP adds. More»

Could impede Justice tactic of jail time for illegal immigrants

(NEWSER) - The Supreme Court said today it will hear a case pertinent to a recent surge in identity-theft prosecutions against illegal immigrants, the Washington Post reports. Lower courts were split over whether the government must prove that thieves knew they were stealing the identity of an actual person when they use a fake ID. A ruling against the Justice Department could hamstring recent efforts to the threat of prison time to crack down on illegal immigration, analysts say. More»

Senator skips court hearing, which centers on mail-in document

(NEWSER) - Larry Craig's lawyers asked a state appeals court today to allow him to withdraw his guilty plea to disorderly conduct charges. The prosecutor argued that the senator, who did not appear today, waived his right to a trial by using a mail-in form to enter a plea after being busted in a Minneapolis airport bathroom last summer. But the members of the three-judge panel seemed skeptical, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. More»