Craig to announce resignation Saturday

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Embattled Republican Sen. Larry Craig will announce his resignation from the Senate Saturday, a GOP source in Idaho said Friday.

Craig will leave office on September 30, the source said.

Earlier, several well-placed GOP sources in Washington and Idaho had said Craig was likely to resign soon.

GOP sources with knowledge of the situation told CNN's Dana Bash that the Republican National Committee was poised to take the extraordinary step of calling on Craig to resign but held off.

The RNC put the move on hold, the sources said, because top party leaders had received indications that Craig himself was preparing to step down.

Craig has been under pressure to quit since news surfaced this week that he was arrested in June at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and later pleaded guilty to a disorderly conduct charge.

The arrest was made by an officer investigating reports of sexual behavior in an airport restroom.

In a post-arrest police recording released Thursday, Craig denied that he was trying to engage in lewd behavior in the airport bathroom and suggested he was entrapped by the arresting officer.

"I sit down to go to the bathroom, and you said our feet bumped," Craig told an officer. "I believe they did ... because I reached down and scooted over and the next thing I knew, under the bathroom divider comes a card that says 'police.' "

Craig said he was in the bathroom for its intended purpose and told the officers,"I am not gay. I don't do these kinds of things."

"You shouldn't be out to entrap people either," Craig said. Listen to the interview »

The officer accused Craig of lying during the contentious, eight-minute session, and said he would not take the senator to jail "as long as you're cooperative."

"I'm just disappointed in you, sir," the officer said. "I mean, people vote for you."

Craig spokesman Dan Whiting said Thursday the tape "speaks for itself."

The RNC held off its call for Craig to resign after it got word from Idaho Republicans that such a move could backfire, said GOP sources.

"Any official group saying he would have to resign would have been explosive," a GOP source told CNN. "Craig can't easily go if it appears he's been dictated to by the White House, the RNC, or any other party structure. It has to be his decision."

"He needed a grace period, a day with no action," said the GOP source. "He's gotten some breathing room, and that's helped."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Friday called Craig's conduct "unforgivable" and acknowledged that many in his caucus believe Craig should resign.

"We have acted promptly to begin the process of dealing with this conduct," McConnell said. "We will see what happens in the coming days."

Craig's guilty plea to the misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge came earlier this month, according to state criminal records.

Craig told reporters Tuesday he did not take part in "inappropriate conduct" and said he had "overreacted and made a poor decision" in pleading guilty. No sexual contact is alleged to have taken place, although the officer who arrested the senator said Craig moved his foot to touch the officer's foot while they sat in adjoining restroom stalls.

Craig is a three-term senator who has aligned himself with conservative groups that oppose gay rights. Watch as pressure mounts from fellow Republicans for Craig to resign »

If Craig does leave office, Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter would name an interim replacement to serve until next year's election. Otter would most certainly name a fellow Republican, and that person would most likely have a major edge in the 2008 contest, because Idaho is a heavily Republican state.

Meanwhile, a SurveyUSA poll showed that 55 percent of Idaho respondents think Craig should step down. The poll of 475 registered Idaho voters was conducted Tuesday. Thirty-four percent of the 475 respondents said Craig should remain in office.

The Idaho Statesman -- a newspaper the senator has accused of conducting a "witch hunt" -- was frank in calling for his resignation.

"We cannot abide an elected official who didn't disclose a lewd conduct arrest until the story broke 77 days later -- a lie by omission and a violation of the public trust," the Statesman said in an editorial published in Thursday's editions. "We cannot afford ... to have a senator who merely provides fodder for bloggers and late-night talk show hosts."

In its editorial, the Boise newspaper pointed out it endorsed Craig for re-election in 2002. But in recent months, it had been investigating allegations that Craig had made sexual advances to men.

Sen. John McCain, a GOP presidential candidate, has called Craig's case "disgraceful." Another Republican senator, Norm Coleman of Minnesota, has said Craig pleaded guilty to "a crime involving conduct unbecoming a senator."

The White House also has voiced its displeasure over the scandal.

Craig, 62 and married, has stepped down from his role in the presidential campaign of Republican Mitt Romney. E-mail to a friend

CNN's Dana Bash, Candy Crowley and Jessica Yellin contributed to this report.

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