Perhaps Clinton's lying had more to do with the trumped-up Paula Jones lawsuit than anything else.   (And had Jones not sued him, Ken Starr would never have been interested in Monica or the blue dress, much less had any reason to find out about them.)


The Craig "scancal" though, is not about any political advantage to the Democrats -- at least not in the short run.    Politically, it would be better for the Dems if Craig remained in office, as this story would make him more vulnerable to defeat when he's up for re-election.   The Republicans, on the other hand, see this is a golden opportunity to replace Craig with another, no doubt more squeaky clean, conservative Republican, long before that new Senator will have to stand for reelection.    (They weren't so eager for Vitter to resign, because the governor in his state is a Democrat.)


Charley,
Paradoxically, Sen. Craig could have successfully avoided prosecution by "flashing his Senatorial badge" and saying he was a member of the US Senate in town on official business.    I've been told he would have been exempt from prosecution (at least on a minor matter like this) for that reason.
Of course, that would not have kept Drudge and other tabloid media from getting hold of the story.