Franken wins by +312 votes.
Number of days Norm Coleman seemed to lead: 43. (Nov. 4 through hand recount and end of rulings on challenged ballots: Dec. 17)
Number of days Al Franken has certifiably led: 140 (Dec. 18 to NOW)
Number of days since election day (Nov. 4): 183
Number of days until MN Supreme Court hears oral arguments of appeal of Coleman v. Franken: 26 (June 1)
Newly minted, former Democrat-turned-Republican-turned-Democrat Senator from Pennsylvania, Arlen Specter, weighs in on the MN-Sen Recount....just past the Orange Fold....
Today I feel like Father John Francis Patrick Mulcahey from M*A*S*H in the episode where Radar is hurt after Hawkeye sends him off to Seoul for some "action." Radar gets wounded on the way and is evac-ed to MASH 4077 and a guilt-ridden Hawkeye has to step out of surgery to vomit partway through the serious (but not life-threatening) surgery to repair the damage. Later in post-op he ends up yelling at Radar for his hero-worship and "Iowa naivete." The whole camp is upset and Fr. Mulcahey comes to see Hawkeye.
"Hawkeye, I know you work under terrific pressure here and please take this in the spirit it is intended but have you lost your mind? Where's your decency man? That boy is lying there wounded and you talk to him like that? I tell you I'm not just upset; I am acrimonious!"
Its the same way with news from Senator Specter, the newest quasi-Democrat in the US Senate. In an upcoming New York Times interview he gets a softball question about being the last Jewish Republican in the Senate. He answers it bugs him and could have waited for the next question.
Instead:
Q. With your departure from the Republican Party, there are no more Jewish Republicans in the Senate. Do you care about that?
A. I sure do. There’s still time for the Minnesota courts to do justice and declare Norm Coleman the winner.
Q. Which seems about as likely at this point as Jerry Seinfeld’s joining the Senate.
A. Well, it was about as likely as my becoming a Democrat.
Arlen! Have you lost your mind? Really!
First, why is being Jewish and Republican even a question? Yeah its as unlikely as a Big Mac at a vegan dinner but so what? No big deal. And Norm "Les Faux Dentales du Cheval" Coleman would be holding that last rag of honor, Jewish Republican Senator? Its a damned small caucus as it is, but fortunately neither Talmud nor the Constitution require a minyam to pass EFCA, universal health care, or to (keel)haul a fair percentage of the last Administration through any number of courts of justice.
Next, Arlen: "Do justice"? Have you lost your mind? On what grounds do you raise this? Were you joking and the gum-chewing reporter thought you were serious? At what point has there been INjustice? Is it not written "if the diff between 2 candidates is less than 0.5% a recount of votes is required."? Was this not done, Arlen? Was it not done openly, transparently, with challenges and arguments and quick runs to the MN Supreme Court?
"Let there be a State Canvassing Board of 5 to decide the challenges." And it was so. Arlen? Have you lost your mind? Haven't you heard of The upTake? They covered it live, challenge by challenge. There are tapes, video tapes. Arlen, you should watch them. Don't pull a McCain Internet here and let it be said, "Senator Specter is aware of the UpTake".
And Arlen? It is written, "You don't like how the Canvassing Board rules? So sue me. I'll set up a court just for you." The ECC set up shop and heard 5 weeks of Norm-andies AND, to be fair and just, 2 weeks from Mr. Franken. It was no injustice that Norm has Tony Trimble at his side being unjust with evidence and being slapped with a sanction from the Court....that WAS justice. The fact that Tony came off as somehow fulfilling the proverb "A lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client" is unfortunate, but no injustice. (OTOH it is also written (here) that "The client who has a Ginsberg for an advisor is a fool" but that is still not injustice.)
NOW Arlen the Supreme Court will hear the appeal. 2 members of the Sanhedrin who were in on the case earlier have stepped back (!) from the bench to avoid even the appearance of bias. Briefs are being written and filed. Laws are being researched. Precedents are presented and scrutinized. And all this is unjust .... How? Have you lost your mind? Slow, yes? Unjust to Al Franken? Perhaps you should consider THAT angle Arlen? Unjust to the people of MN and being represented in the Senate? What of them, Arlen?
And then Joe Bodell at MN Progressive reports
Said Specter: "In the swirl of moving from one caucus to another, I have to get used to my new teammates. I'm ordinarily pretty correct in what I say. I've made a career of being precise. I conclusively misspoke."
Asked who he's backing now in elections, Specter said, "I'm looking for more Democratic members. Nothing personal."
http://www.mnprogressiveproject.com/...
Not smooth Arlen, but thats what happens on this side of the street. You get the Great Orange One himself to put up a diary on the front page; you get a recommended diary with over 600 comments in about 4 hours; you'd BETTER issue a "What I really MEANT to say..." kind of statement.
After all, it is written, "Better to thought of a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt."
Acrimonious indeed!
Book Report
Is this going to happen? A book collecting these MN Senate diaries? Well 48 of you have pre-ordered (Thank you! Thank you! You really, really LIKE me.), the word count approaches 300,000 (Yikes!) AND the printer has told us s/he needs the final layouts of every page BY........ June 26 if we're going to have it in time for Net Roots Nation.
SO that means gulping hard dedication on the part of the editors, with panic, fear and terror circling overhead like the moons of Mars, Deimos and Phobos. AND it means, may it please the Court, Mr. Associate Justice Alan Page and crew? After June 1's oral arguments we'll be really under the gun, so if you could rule swiftly so I can get the book in print, I'd really appreciate it. See thats what the entire recount has come down to: how does it affect WineRev? What can you do to make WineRev's life easier? How can you ensure his book not only is finished but is finished ON TIME? I'm not asking for an Al Franken Decade, only a WineRev month. So make sure in your legal reasoning you take into account how this will impact me, WineRev, and provide a great finish for the WineRev's book. WineRev thanks you for your support. I know you'll do fine.
http://www.wordalchemy.net/...
Gotta finish packing for Mama WineRev's in Florida, get to the early shift and catch a plane south. YOU have mere days to get something in the mail or ordered for your MOM so get on it. And THAT is the latest from yust southeast of Lake Wobegon for this morning.
Shalom.