Craig said earlier he planned to resign Sept. 30, then left the door open to stay if he could successfully withdraw his plea.

Craig, serving his third term as senator, pleaded guilty in August to disorderly conduct following a June 11 sting operation in a men's room at the Minneapolis airport.

That he will stay in the Senate past Sunday was an unwelcome development for Senate Republican leaders who have made clear they wish Craig would step down and let Idaho's GOP governor, C.L. "Butch" Otter name a replacement.

Otter canceled an extended tour of the state's overcrowded prisons this week to interview some of the nearly 30 people _ including Lt. Gov. Jim Risch and Attorney General Lawrence Wasden _ who have publicly expressed interest in Craig's job.

"He wanted to be ready to act if we received a letter of resignation," said Jon Hanian, Otter's spokesman in Boise. "Obviously, we had not. ... Until he receives a letter of resignation, we have no vacancy, therefore, there is no replacement."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., told reporters he had nothing to add to previous statements in which he said he thought Craig made the proper decision on Sept. 1, when he announced his intention to resign by month's end.

Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, Craig's strongest ally in the Senate, said that Craig, "like every citizen facing allegations, deserves to be able to fully defend himself."

Craig's lawyer, Billy Martin, said it is "near impossible, and it should be" for Craig to withdraw his plea. But he said his client's conduct _ shoe tapping and hand gestures under a men's room stall divider _ was not criminal.

The arresting officer described those gestures as signals recognized in the gay community as an invitation for sex. Craig has repeatedly said he is not homosexual.

Jim Weatherby, professor emeritus of political science at Boise State University, said Craig has been permanently weakened by the charges.

"How effective can he be, when his leadership wants him out?" Weatherby asked. "I suspect they would want to punish him further than the steps they've already taken."

Craig gave up his leadership posts on Senate committees after his arrest become public. Senate Republicans would have to vote to restore those posts, an action seen as highly unlikely.

"To me that's a continuation of the war," Edwards said. "Combat missions mean that the war is continuing. I believe the war needs to be brought to an end."

Edwards' broadside put Clinton on the defensive at a time when she is enjoying a comfortable lead in opinion polls and trying to appear above the fray. But there was no sign that the debate would prompt a major shake-up in the Democratic field.

"There may be a continuing counter-terrorism mission," she said, while adding that "the vast majority" of American troops would be out of Iraq by the end of her prospective first term in 2013.

The cross-fire on the campus of Dartmouth College came at the first debate of the critical autumn season leading up to the early voting contests in January ahead of the November 2008 election to replace President George W. Bush.

Iraq was a dominant theme of the debate as Democrats seek a way to force Bush to change his war strategy, which may leave as many as 100,000 troops there by the time the next president is inaugurated in January 2009.

"This is a tremendous victory for the civil liberties of young adults," said Kary Moss, executive director of the ACLU of Michigan.

Under the 1998 law, pedestrians under 21 who refuse to take a breath test face a $100 fine. To require a breath analysis, an officer must have reasonable cause to believe that a minor has been drinking.

Backers of the law have said police need breath testers and other tools to enforce the legal drinking age.

In 2006, the city of Mount Pleasant and Isabella County agreed to pay $5,000 to two of the plaintiffs, Cullin Stewart and Samuel Maness, and stop warrantless pedestrian breath tests until Lawson issued a final ruling.

Both Stewart and Maness attended a 2003 post-prom party in Isabella County where, according to the lawsuit, an interagency police task force called the "Party Patrol" broke up the party, placed the students in a circle and asked if they had been drinking.

They had to blow into a portable breath tester, according to the suit. Stewart was not charged, but Maness was issued a citation accusing him of being a minor in possession of alcohol.

Michigan State Police, Central Michigan University and Saginaw County's Thomas Township Police Department also are defendants in the case.

A telephone message seeking comment was left at the office of state police spokeswoman Shanon Akans.

PCT Law Group, PLLC announced today that it has opened the doors of its new office in McLean, Virginia. The firm, which is located in the heart of Tysons Corner, will devote its practice to representing regional and national clients in a broad range of corporate, intellectual property, employment, and litigation matters.

PCT Law Group has tapped H. Scott Johnson, Jr. to serve as its Managing Member. Johnson was previously with Arlington-based Albo & Oblon, LLP and has worked in the General Counsel’s office of Noblis, Inc. (formerly Mitretek Systems, Inc.) and the Washington, D.C. real estate transactional boutique Krooth & Altman, LLP. Prominent intellectual property attorney Raymond Millien will manage PCT’s patent, copyright, and trademark practice. Prior to joining PCT, Millien was General Counsel for Ocean Tomo, LLC. Millien has also served as Vice President and IP Counsel at The American Express Company and practiced at the Washington, D.C. offices of DLA Piper US, LLP and Sterne Kessler Goldstein & Fox, PLLC.

“Tysons Corner is the epicenter for businesses competing in the 21st century knowledge economy,” said Johnson. “PCT’s central location between the District of Columbia and the Dulles Technology Corridor provides us with a unique opportunity to serve companies at all stages of the growth cycle. Our talented team of established attorneys will offer the experience and legal acumen of a large law firm at a fraction of the cost.”

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The world's largest retailer said it will make available for $4 drugs to treat glaucoma, attention deficit disorder/attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, fungal infections and acne. Fertility and prescription birth control will also be available for $9, Wal-Mart said.

Last year, Wal-Mart began selling certain generic drugs for $4 per monthly prescription in September and by the end of November had extended the program to all its U.S. pharmacies -- far ahead of schedule.

The company said $4 prescriptions now account for nearly 40 percent of all prescriptions filled in its Wal-Mart, Sam's Club and Neighborhood Market pharmacies. It estimates that over the past year, the program has saved customers $613.6 million.

Earlier this year, it said it would open as many as 400 in-store health clinics in the next two to three years, and that number could jump to 2,000 in five to seven years.

The judge also dismissed claims against Thomas W. Jones, the former chief executive of Citigroup Asset Management, and Lewis E. Daidone, the former treasurer and chief financial officer of the Smith Barney family of funds.

"It is undisputed that defendants disclosed the amount of fees paid by the funds. Thus, plaintiffs were in possession of all material information, i.e., they knew the value of the funds," the judge said in a nine-page opinion.

The consolidated lawsuit alleged that Citigroup's asset-management business took most of the benefit of a discount from using an affiliated transfer agent for itself, pocketing more than $90 million, rather than passing on those savings to the mutual funds and their customers.

In February, another federal judge in Manhattan dismissed a similar case brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission against Jones and Daidone. Citigroup itself settled the SEC's charges in May 2005 and agreed to pay $208 million to affected mutual-fund customers. In settling, the financial-services company didn't admit or deny wrongdoing.

A lawyer for the investors and a Citigroup spokesman didn't immediately return phone calls seeking comment Wednesday.