By Bart Jansen, CQ Staff

It was just last year that Sen. Larry E. Craig riveted political Washington with his arrest in an airport sex sting and subsequent public declaration, “I am not gay.”

On Thursday, there was much less hubbub — in fact, none at all — as the Idaho Republican delivered his farewell speech on the Senate floor.

In a largely empty chamber, Craig talked at length about energy independence and the importance of increasing domestic oil production.

A couple of his colleagues said nice things about his legislative work. He said nice things about them in return.

And then it was done.

“The Senate works well when senators are friends and partners,” Craig said. “Now, we may have our disagreements along the way, and there may be some disagreements between Democrats and Republicans, but when the collegiality of the Senate leaves, the Senate no longer works, or works as well as it should on behalf of our citizens.”

Craig knows a thing or two about collegiality, or lack thereof.

His fellow Republican senators pushed him to quit his job last year — advice he briefly accepted, only to later change his mind and keep his seat.

Craig also changed his mind about pleading guilty to disorderly conduct after his arrest in a Minneapolis airport restroom sex sting. He appealed the plea he entered in August 2007, arguing that tapping his toe and peering into a police officer’s stall didn’t justify the charge.

A panel of the Minnesota Court of Appeals is expected to rule on Craig’s request within two months.

Craig, 63, served in the House from 1981 to 1991 and has been in the Senate since. He serves on the Appropriations, Energy and Natural Resources, Environment and Public Works, Veterans’ Affairs, and Special Aging committees.

“Over the years, he has doggedly pursued initiatives important to Idahoans,” said Sen. Michael D. Crapo , R-Idaho. “Sen. Craig’s public service demonstrates a rich history of strong, conservative leadership, characterized by an unapologetic defense of the democratic ideals of private property and personal liberty woven together with an abiding and proactive concern for those without a voice here in Washington.”

“I think we’ve made a very valuable team for our state,” Craig replied. “There’s an old phrase that many have heard over the years that whiskey is for drinking and water is for fighting over,” Craig said. “I wanted Mike Crapo by my side as we worked through water issues.”