I have four responses to WCCO reporter Jason DeRusha's four "plausible answers."
1.) Bullshit
2.) Bullshit
3.) Bullshit
4.) Bullshit

Any copy assistant with six months under his belt could navigate those obstacles with alacrity. How fast would this story have broken had it been Al Franken or Mike Ciresi in that men's room?

Big Daddy:

I work in the media and I wouldn't vote for a Dem if you made me walk on hot coals. (Yes, we exist.) The explanation sounds entirely plausible based upon my background dealing with law enforcement. Sometimes they're cooperative, sometimes they're not. I doubt the Minneapolis papers send a reporter over to the airport police to pick up the police logs or monitor every misdemeanor in the district court, particularly in these days of shrinking staffs.

Having said that, I think this story is getting way more mileage than it would have if a Dem had been nabbed.

Craig ought to come out of the closet and accuse anybody who has a problem with it of homophobia. To paraphrase McGreeley, "I'm a gay Iowan." End of story.

"I think this story is getting way more mileage than it would have if a Dem had been nabbed."

That's because the Dems are not the anti-gay, pro-family values party. This story is about hypocrisy, not homosexuality.

"in these days of shrinking staffs."

Well, I agree with that part. Shrinking staffs and other factors have plagued solid reporting for years.

"Craig ought to come out of the closet and accuse anybody who has a problem with it of homophobia. To paraphrase McGreeley, "I'm a gay Iowan." End of story."

Agreed.

Chuck, dude, I think you've proved your point. Don't you mean McGreevey. And gay Idahoan.

A media worker who wouldn't vote for Democrats... Well, with your fact-checking skills, I'm not terribly surprised.

Um. That would be "McGreevey" not McGreeley. And "Idahoan" not "Iowan."

Yes, the story is getting more mileage than it would have had a Dem got nabbed, but that's in large part because of his alleged hypocrisy in promoting anti-gay public policies.

Okay, Senator. You're not gay. And Bill Clinton did not have sexual relations with that woman.

A gay pol that doesn't support gay marriage isn't a hypocrite. Some gay people don't support gay marriage. There is no hypocrisy there.

This is a common tactic used by some folks. If you don't support my want, as an interest group, that means you hate my people.

Well, I may as well say that DFL legislators hate small business folks. Or that they hate gun-owners. Or unborn children.

Spare us the rhetoric, please.

Who is in charge of the airport police in this city, county or state? Might not that person or agency be encouraged to "encourage" the police there to brush up on public records laws in terms of making arrest records available?

Do the airport cops actually have enough staff to run sting ops in bathrooms or was the detective from some other agency?

Hey Amused,

Why would a gay American not support gay marriage? Possibly because they've been led to believe lies and therefore have no compunction perpetuating those lies?

Who said anything about hating straight/gay people? I think what some people hate is the hypocrisy. You may even want to italicize/bold/or underscore the fact that he is in fact a hypocrite. You might want to try a dictionary if you don't know what the word means.

You might want to spare us from your rhetoric.

I believe he isn't gay. He was just doing some local action test runs for the RNC Moral Majority before the big convention.

Do you think the esteemed "not gay" senator supports his own marriage? What should the punishment be for committing adultery? Hell, divorce, branding an "A" on his forehead. Whatever the punishment should be, we should make sure that the media makes this as public an event as is possible, because Repuklicans should get no privacy at all, especially since he is public official. Let’s not forget the Terri Schiavo spectacle.

Yeah, I've seen Ciresi and Franken together in a restroom stall at the airport, too.
Noisy buggers, they are.

seems plausible this would take so long to make the papers - i think the guilty plea was just processed last week in terms of the record being submitted and recorded and such.

i doubt the airport police issue press releases on their bathroom sex busts - seems like they treated this guy like any other citizen, both in going ahead and arresting him even after he showed his business card (classy) and in not calling the press about it.

the guy's a hypocrite and an abuser of power and has voted for some awful, awful bills while in the senate, but that doesn't mean the local, airport police were covering for him (believe me, i'm no g.o.p sympathizer - am from the hugo chavez wing of the democratic party).

all this said, the g.o.p (and some democratic and much media) reaction to this strikes of homophobia. if the guy had plead guilty to talking to an adult, female prostitute about having sex in a bathroom, we'd probably hear, "let's wait until all the facts are out before we rush to judgment". but since it was another male, they all want to distance themselves quickly.

The reason they did nothing is like the Strib and Press they are typical REITERATORS which outside of your paper, which for some reason still REPORT the News. As when the Bridge fell either coast had in depth studies of why, and which, were duly REITERATED the following day in Minnesota.