In the movie The Usual Suspects there's a scene where a detective is interrogating an alleged criminal.

The detective says to the suspect, "The first thing I learned on the job, know what it was? How to spot a murderer. Let's say you arrest three guys for the same killing. Put them all in jail overnight. The next morning, whoever is sleeping is your man. If you're guilty, you know you're caught, you get some rest - let your guard down, you follow?"

When Larry Craig's "difficulties" came out recently, it reminded me of that scene.

In case you've been out of the country (or in case you don't live the the U.S.), the Republican Senator from Idaho was arrested on June 11th at a Minnesota airport by a plainclothes police officer. The officer was investigating lewd conduct complaints in a men's public restroom.

Craig pled guilty to a misdemeanor on August 8th after paying $500 in fines.

A spokesman for Craig said later that it was a "misunderstanding".

And yet, he pled guilty.

Craig later said, "I should have had the advice of counsel in resolving this matter. In hindsight, I should not have pled guilty. I was trying to handle this matter myself quickly and expeditiously."

This is where I see incongruity with Mr. Craig:

1. An innocent man doesn't plead guilty. An innocent man puts up a huge fight, doesn't get any sleep, rages about his innocence. (This is not to say that guilty people don't also use this same tactic.)

2. Mr. Craig didn't call for his attorney. The first thing anyone does--guilty and innocent--is call an attorney. The quickest and most expeditious way to handle a legal problem is to get represented.

3. Craig said, "I am not gay - nor have I ever been gay." This sounds like he believes it is possible to have been gay and then become ungay. It's waffling.

Lastly, but maybe the most incongruous of all:

4. He didn't go home and tell his wife about the incident. If something as outrageous as this happened to any one of us and had absolutely no basis in truth, wouldn't we all go home to our spouses (or families or friends) and say, "You're not going to believe what happened to me today. It's the most absurd thing..."

Then Senator Craig decided that the media was to blame.

It's all because of the Idaho Statesman. They've been "relentlessly and viciously" harassing him.

The media is usually an excellent villain because they do get so much wrong, so it's a pretty safe bet as far as scapegoats go. Unfortunately, Mr. Craig has a "history" and his anger doesn't seem very righteous.

As persuaders, how, in either situation - whether the allegations are absolutely false or absolutely true - could we frame the story if we were in his shoes?

Did his incongruity give him away? And what can he do to unframe himself?

Kenrick Cleveland teaches strategies to earn the business of wealthy prospects using persuasion. He runs public and private seminars and offers home study courses and coaching programs in persuasion strategies.

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