Minnesota Senate Seat
Posted by Mike Sylvester - 1/5/09 @ 8:01 pm - Filed Under 2008 National Elections
The race for the Senate in Minnesota in November of 2008 was extremely close. Infact Coleman (The Republican) led by a couple of hundred votes immediately after the election. A recount was performed and after that recount Franken (The Democrat) now leads by 225 votes.
I have followed this recount by reading Republican and Democratic news sources.
Both candidates and their campaigns have acted in an insulting fashion and have attempted to get certain votes counted they felt would favor them while at the same time trying to get votes they feel would help that other candidate eliminated.
The Secretary of State has closed the recount and determined that Franken (The Democrat) won by 225 votes. There were a couple of million votes cast in this contest. It was an extremely close race.
I feel that Al Franken (The Democrat) should be seated and that the State of Minnesota should carefully analyze their election process and see what they can do to improve it. They especially need to look at how their absentee ballots are handled.
I now hear that some of the Senate Republicans may filibuster the seating of Al Franken (Democrat) until Coleman’s legal challenges are resolved.
The Senate Republicans need to get a grip and move on. Elections are handled by the States and the Secretary of State of Minnesota has certified Al Franken (D) as the winner.
Al Franken should be seated and the Republicans should move on.
Mike Sylvester
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38 Responses to “Minnesota Senate Seat”
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Yeah Mike,
That’s just what this country needs, another damn clown in the Senate, as if we didn’t have enough already.
Keep in mind this comes from the same state that put James George Janos, a.k.a Jesse Ventura, a phony-baloney tag-team wrestler in as governor.
Priceless. What next, Paris Hilton for congress. Save me, please. Bring on the filibuster, we don’t need another crazy-ass nut in the senate.
Oh, when are you going back to the libertarian party? Please….
Penny Wise,
What good will filibustering do? It just delays the inevitable.
I am not going anywhere…
Maybe you should look to switch Parties…
Mike Sylvester
Penny,
The voters of Minnesota chose Al Franken for their Senate representation and their wishes should be respected. Despite Bush’s best efforts we still live in a representative Democracy…
Minnesota has chosen Jesse the Body Ventura as Governor, and Stuart Smalley as their Senator. Not to mention that they were the only state to vote for Mondale over Reagan.
Can we just let Canada have Minnesota and call it a day?
Touche’ Green Jeans!
While listening to Dennis Miller today, I found out that Al Frankenberry was also a wrestler. This is the guy we want in the US Senate?
Mike
Your blog, your opinion, but that is all that it is. This baby is headed for the Minnesota Supreme Court because the odor is overwhelming. The NY Post lists these issues that need resolution:
Let’s wait out Round #10 of this bout and let Minnesota Law work the way that it is designed.
Penny Wise,
Mike remains committed to the Republican Party. He will be in the Republican Party as long as there is a Republican Party. I don’t know what he’ll do after 2010, though.
It appears that Franken won. It also appears that the “nut case” from Illinois made his choice as a senate replacement according to federal law. The addition of more clowns in the senate circus cannot do much more to increase the “stupid factor” in Washington. Only the lawyers win!
Penny-
It does not matter who “WE” want in the US Senate. It matters who the voters of Minnesota want.
It is entertaining to watch. When Coleman was leading after the first count he made a statement encouraging Franken to “concede and save the taxpayers of Minnesota the cost of a recount.” Looks like Mr. Coleman should take some of his own advice.
Kevin,
He’s now going to be known as the ACORN Senator. That makes at least two.
Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie, who orchestrated the recount that gave Democratic challenger Al Franken a lead some six weeks after incumbent GOP Sen. Norm Coleman appeared to win by 725 votes on Election Day, has extensive ties to both the ACORN organization now under federal investigation for vote fraud, and to MoveOn.org ultra-liberal kingmaker George Soros.
In 2006, ACORN endorsed Ritchie in his bid to become secretary of state, and Ritchie also received a campaign contribution that year from Soros.
Indeed, Ritchie has credited his own political career in large part to an obscure, Soros-funded group called the Secretary of State Project (SoS), whose express purpose is to seed state election bureaucracies nationwide with partisan activists — Ritchie among them — who are strategically positioned to influence the outcome of close recounts like the one now underway in Minnesota.
Gadfly,
I agree with you that there likely are problems with the recount and I agree in the end it will be determined by the Minnesota Supreme Court.
I still think Franken should be seated; then if the Minnesota Supreme Court overturns the election then Franken should be thrown out and Coleman should be seated.
Mike
Penny-
Wake up.
GOP politics have been refuted at the national level- Trick-down economics have not worked, the War in Iraq (by they way, who did we declare war on?)is a quagmire and the PEOPLE lost faith in the GOP.
Time to move on and accept it.
Knuth
I’m not sure what you mean that Republican politics have been refuted. Please tell me you’re not talking about the fact that the Democratic Presidential nominee received a majority of the popular vote for the first time since the Jimmy Carter tidal wave of 1976 (50.1% of the popular vote over a president who was never elected to national office).
Further, if GOP politics have been refuted, which obviously is not true, its only because the Democrats have adopted large portions of the Republicans platform (when is the last time you heard someone describe themselves as a “fiscal liberal”). One prime example is our own beloved Jeff Pruitt, formerly of “Fort Wayne Left”, who would not only not be “left” in my old stomping grounds of Ann Arbor, MI but would qualify squarely as a moderate Republican (sorry Jeff, but your crazy views of careful government spending would have ostracized you from the local Democratic party faster than Ted Kennedy leaving a sinking car).
Kevin Knuth,
You should wake up, your comment is funny; however, it is not factual.
GOP politics have NOT been refuted at the National level. The GOP ran one of the most moderate Republicans in modern history and conservatives stayed home.
Trickle down economics have NOTHING to do with the current economic problems.
The War in Iraq is unpopular and the Democrats successfully blamed it on Bush even though almost every Democrat in Congress authorized President Bush to invade Iraq. The Democrats have controlled Congress for two full years and elected to keep our troops in Iraq, and in fact the Democratic Congress INCREASED troop levels in Iraq.
Now Presendent Elect Obama has announced he is keeping most of the Bush Team in place as far as The Department of Defense.
Soon the War in Iraq will be associated with Obama and the Democrats because they are NOT going to pull our troops out.
Mike Sylvester
Mike,
Interesting- you pontificate a lot of OPINION but accuse me of not using facts.
Sorry- the GOP put THEIR candidate up for election- and he lost…BIG. That means that GOP politics have been refuted.
Trickle Down economics are a part of our current economic crisis- the rich got tax cuts and the middle class disappeared. There was no prosperity for the masses- and that contributes to our current problems.
Yes, many Democrats supported the War in Iraq. The Bush administration assured us that there were WMD’s….remember??? Colin Powell even went to the UN. Remember????
We cannot leave overnight. It is that simple. And you point out that the Dems control congress- but they do not make the decision to pull out troops- the Bush admin would have to do that.
The only option the Dems would have is to not fund the troops- and then you would be all over them for endagering the lives of U.S. Soldiers.
You will see, during Obama’s first term (because he will be a two term President), a scaling down of forces in Iraq, and most likely, in increase of force in Afghanistan.
Make no mistake about it- Iraq will always be “Bush’s War”.
Mike,
During the Republican primary season, Republican voters put Sen. McCain in place to represent their party. Not Huckabee. Not Romney. Not Giuliani. Not Thompson.
As far as the Vote to authorize the President the ability to invade Iraq, the vote in the Senate breaks down this way:
48 Republicans for
29 Democrats for
21 Democrats against
1 Republican against
1 Independent against
In the House:
215 Republicans for
81 Democrats for
6 Republicans against
126 Democrats against
1 Independent against
3 non voting
I don’t think this qualifies as almost every Democrat when the majority of Democrats voted against the authorization.
Kevin,
It’s the war that’s hurting the economy. We’re sending some of our best and brightest and a lot of money to Iraq. The myth that war is good for the economy started when the unemployment rate dropped during World War II, which was due to armaments production and the draft. Aside from all the killing, what sucks about war is that it forces a country to build a lot of stuff that doesn’t raise the quality of life for the civilian population. Sometimes war is necessary to fight off an aggressor, but don’t ever think of it as an economic stimulus.
Back to the original topic of the post, It would appear to any “thinking” person that the results in MInnesota are inaccurate to say the least. When you have more ballots cast than you have registered voters, you have a problem. That being said, I am no fan of Norm Coleman, after watching him blather on incoherently and blatantly grandstand during Katrina hearings he proved himself to be a petty little prick with grandiose political ambitions. He’s an asswipe of the highest order.
As for Al Franken, he’s another petty little prick that lies through his teeth whenever he opens his mouth. He’s proven himself to be a nasty little man with a penchant for belittling anyone that doesn’t agree with his cock-eyed views. In short, he’s frickin’ idiot.
Minnesota deserves whatever they get. They’re both flippin’ idiots.
Amen Tim
Kevin,
You should try looking at some facts rather than spin from the DNC…
I agree that OBama won the election; however, he ran against a moderate big Government Republican; that is not way refutes the GOP. You just go on telling yourself the GOP is refuted and when they gain a bunch of seats in 2010 I will say I told you so.
Your comments about trickle down economics are way off base; however, I am not surprised. I am squarely in the middle class as are the vast majority of my clients. The middle class likely did shrink in the last few years; a large number of them became rich and a large number became poor.
You comments about Iraq are closer to the truth; however, you neglect topoint out that The Democrats COULD have pulled and troops out and they can if they want in 2009; however, you and I both know they won’t.
Wow, Kevin, Obama PROMISED to have all combat troops out of Iraq in 16 months. I will be keeping track. You and I both know he has no intention of pulling out in 16 months, on other words he lied.
I do NOT think Obama will be a two term President. In fact I think it is very likely he will be beat in 2012 because his economic policies are going to destroy the dollar over the next four years and he is going to preside over 4 - 6 trillion dollars in deficits in the next four years.
Mike
John,
You are right the Republicans chose a very moderate commentl that is what I said in my post.
I agree with you about Democrats voting to authorize invading Iraq. I was wrong in my post. It would be fairer to say about half of Democrats support Bush’s plan to invade Iraq.
Mike
Tim Zank,
I agree with you, both Franken and Coleman are idiots.
Mike Sylvester
“You are right the Republicans chose a very moderate commentl that is what I said in my post.”
“I agree with you, both Franken and Coleman are idiots.”
Pot, kettle? Glass house, stone-throwing? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?
Mike,
Nice try, but here is Obama’s stance from his website:
“…Military experts believe we can safely redeploy combat brigades from Iraq at a pace of 1 to 2 brigades a month that would remove them in 16 months….
Under the Obama-Biden plan, a residual force will remain in Iraq and in the region to conduct targeted counter-terrorism missions against al Qaeda in Iraq and to protect American diplomatic and civilian personnel. They will not build permanent bases in Iraq, but will continue efforts to train and support the Iraqi security forces as long as Iraqi leaders move toward political reconciliation and away from sectarianism.”
Note that it does not PROMISE to be out in 16 months…in fact, his promise is to keep forces there.
You really need to check facts against something other than Sean Hannity or Fox News
Kevin, don’t be a putz. His well publicized promise was 16 months…until he waffled on it (among hundreds of other things). His website “promises” and “policies” have been changed more often than Madonna’s sheets.
Reading this thread…
…now I know what it’s like to sit at the kiddie table during a Limbaugh family reunion.
Kevin,
As usual you choose the facts that you like and ignore those you don’t. When on the campaign trail Obama repeatedly vowed to remove all combat troops from Iraq.
He has said this countless times and you and everyone reading this blog knows it.
Mike
Mike,
I reference where I got my info. If John Doe was wondering Obama’s stance on Iraq, he would most likely go to his website, and that is what he would find.
Tim,
I am not being a putz, you putz!
Looks clear to me from his statement that we will keep “a residual force will remain in Iraq and in the region to conduct targeted counter-terrorism missions against al Qaeda in Iraq and to protect American diplomatic and civilian personnel. ”
So the majority of troops leave, but we will always have to have someone there…unless you Republicans are NOW saying that there are no terrorist in them thar hills!
OR, would you prefer that he does not protect us from al Qaeda?
Tim and Mike
Let’s just be thankful that, like Clinton, Obama appears ready to sell out every special interest group which he wooed during the campagin. You call it waffling, and it may be, but I call it providence.
Kevin,
You did reference where you got your info as I did. I got my info from countless speaches Obama gave. After he has been in office three months we will see how many troops are in Iraq.
Mike
Kevin sez : ” OR, would you prefer that he does not protect us from al Qaeda?” heh heh heh…
Nice spin.
The point Mike and I both make very clearly, is the “The One” went from “We’ll withdraw immediately” on the campaign trail to his current GWB withdrawal plan. He simply lied to Code Pink & MoveOn & Kos to get elected, no biggy. Hope & change? heh heh heh
As Daltry said so aptly “Meet the new boss, same as the old boss”. In the case of troop withdrawal anyway.
So now a loyal leftist has two choices, call him on it (like Jodie Evans of Code Pink) or spin it (like Kevin Knuth)
Craig, You’d fit right in at the kiddie table at a Limbaugh reunion, after all, kids don’t listen, are generally belligerent, obnoxious, whiney, dissatisfied with everything they have and always want someone to give them more, hell you’d be the captain of the kiddie table!
Actually the children in my family are all pretty nice. Tim’s description must be a Zank family thing.
Yeah, I think it’s typical of most kid’s tables at any family reuinion, the difference being of course in my family the kids all grow up and get jobs and shit.
Just as an aside on pulling troops out of Iraq - didn’t Bush just enter into an agreement to keep our troops there until 2011?
Can Obama void that agreement? Can he deviate from it by pulling troops out regardless of the time frame? Can he, say, just look at it as only a suggested time frame and move toward bringing troops home or redeploy them at earlier dates?
To whom are you referring Tim?
To the best of my knowledge, everyone in my family is either employed or in school full-time. Myself, I work and go to school. I’m willing to consider the idea that you’re just making things up again.
Talk about getting off topic..
Yeah, Sorry we “veered” off there Penny, but ya just can’t let a “Knuthism” go unchallenged! He’s waaaay too much fun to spar with!