Larry Craig is serving his second term as a United States Senator from Idaho.

Senator Craig quickly rose to the fourth highest Senate leadership position in his first term, when his colleagues elected him Chairman of the Republican Policy Committee. After winning his second Senate term, he was re-elected to the post. He is responsible for developing policy positions for Senate Republicans. Other Republican Policy Committee duties include overseeing research, sponsoring issue forums and helping Majority Leader Trent Lott operate the Senate. 

Senator Craig served previously as chairman of the Steering Committee, a legislative "think tank" and action group for Senate conservatives. He was the youngest senator ever elected to that position. 

A forceful advocate for common sense and conservative solutions to our nation's problems, Senator Craig has emerged as a leader in the battle for the Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution, limited taxation, private property rights, and greater accountability in government. He has been recognized by national groups including Citizens for a Sound Economy, Citizens Against Government Waste, Watchdogs of the Treasury, and the National Taxpayers Union Foundation for his votes to cut spending and protect the taxpayer. 

With his recent appointment to the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Craig will oversee funding on the following subcommittees: Energy and Water Development; Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education; Legislative Branch; Military Construction; and VA, HUD and Independent Agencies. 

Senator Craig is a member of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, where he is the chairman of the Subcommittee on Forests and Public Land Management. He also serves on the Subcommittee on Energy Research, Development, Production and Regulation, and the Subcommittee on Water and Power. 

He serves on the Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, where he serves on the subcommittees on 
Research, Nutrition and General Legislation, and Forestry, Conservation and Rural Revitalization. 

In addition, he serves on the Veterans' Affairs Committee, and is a member of the Special Committee on Aging. 

As a westerner and a former rancher, he plays a leading role in the formation of natural resource and energy policies, and has gained a national reputation as a stalwart against environmental extremism. He is also one of America's foremost defenders of Second Amendment rights. 

Larry was born on the family ranch homesteaded in 1899 by his grandfather, and later served as the Idaho State President and National Vice President of the Future Farmers of America. 

After graduating from the University of Idaho where he served as Student Body President and was a member of Delta Chi fraternity, he pursued graduate studies before returning to the family ranching business in 1971. 

In 1974, the people of Payette and Washington counties sent Senator Craig to the Idaho State Senate, where he served three terms before winning the 1980 race for the U.S. Congress from Idaho's First Congressional District. He was re-elected four times before winning the U.S. Senate election in 1990 and was re-elected to the Senate in 1996. 

The Idaho lawmaker is on the Board of Directors of the National Rifle Association and is Senate co-chairman of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption. He also co-founded and co-chairs the Congressional Property Rights Coalition. 

He is married to the former Suzanne Thompson. They have three children: two sons, Mike and Jay, and a daughter, Shae, who is married to Jeff Czartoryski.