The American Spectator

The Spectacle Blog

Minnesotans may soon welcome Al Franken as their Senator according to this piece by Scott Johnson (of Power Line) at National Review.  The Franken/Coleman debacle has been playing out in trial for the last several weeks. The case is technically still pending with the panel judges, but Johnson thinks it's in the bag for the comedian.  He also thinks while Franken's politics are as ugly as he is unfunny, he didn't steal the election, he just outsmarted his opponent. I'm not sure I completely agree with him--at least, don't want to--but it looks like he's followed it much closer than I have, has been in touch with more contacts on the ground there, and makes a strong case to that end.

Those who postulate Democratic shenanigans as the cause of Coleman's difficulties fail to reckon with the December 18 decision of the Minnesota Supreme Court on the inclusion of previously rejected absentee ballots in the recount. The Minnesota Supreme Court held that absentee ballots identified by local officials during the recount as wrongly rejected should be included in the recount subject to agreement of the parties (and also subject to the possibility of sanctions on the parties' lawyers for withholding agreement in bad faith).

It's worth a read, though it may depress--as much as inform--you.  I guess I'll have to eat my words.