Larry Craig Wins $1.6 Million Earmark For Dude Ranch

From Roll Call's Heard on the Hill:

Idaho Republican Sen. Larry Craig insists he isn't gay and that he wasn't soliciting sex before his arrest last summer. But he's still willing to pay for dudes. Well, for a dude ranch, anyway.

Craig, the ranking member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies before being forced to step down this fall after his sex scandal, still got an earmark in the omnibus spending bill allocating $1.6 million to Idaho's Gold Creek Ranch.

The money, which would be used as part of the USDA Forest Service's Forest Legacy program, is for a 640-acre parcel of land in northern Idaho that's feeling the pressure of development. The project was requested by President

Bush, Craig spokesman Dan Whiting tells HOH.

Helping the dude (ranch) is just one of the things Craig's been doing since getting back in the saddle on Capitol Hill. Last week, Craig assumed a higher profile than he has since his scandal broke, taking to the floor in favor of an amendment limiting eminent domain.

Although the amendment failed, the floor debate gave Craig a rare opportunity to win praise from his GOP colleagues, including Sens. Wayne Allard (Colo.) and Sam Brownback (Kan.), who haven't always been so supportive of their scandal-plagued colleague.

Brownback went so far as to liken Craig's efforts to the founding fathers, invoking the words of Thomas Jefferson.

Whiting says it's business as usual for his boss, who also secured a $7.5 million earmark for the 2009 Special Olympics International Games held in Idaho. "He will represent them in the Senate until January 2009 and will work for Idaho well beyond that as a private citizen," Whiting said.