2008

Today was a big day in the seemingly never-ending saga that is the 2008 Minnesota Senate race. The Minnesota Supreme Court  heard former GOP Sen. Norm Coleman’s challenge of a previous decision by a three-judge panel that awarded the election to Democratic challenger Al Franken. The Coleman camp is seeking the inclusion of 4,400 previously [...]

… you might see your dollars sucked into a defense fund for a lawsuit that has a bit less to do with control of the Senate than the former senator’s challenges of the results of the 2008 election.
Former Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) has requested permission to use his campaign funds for legal fees relating to [...]

Former Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) filed his appeal of the Senate election contest with the Minnesota Supreme Court today, arguing that “widespread disparities” in which absentee ballots were accepted distorted the final vote tally.
“The deliberate and disparate treatment of large numbers of similarly situated voters — who had their votes counted only if they lived [...]

Jonathan Martin plugged this speech from A.B. Culvahouse, the head of Sen. John McCain’s 2008 vice presidential vetting project, and it was a fascinating look into how such decisions are made. Point one: Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) was seriously enough considered by McCain for the vetters to look into state “sore loser” laws that would [...]

Well, of course it’s Tax Day, and while we’ve been a bit preoccupied with all the wacky Tea Party hijinks, it also means that we get to take a look at the president and first lady’s tax returns, which were just released.
The bottom line: they do all right for themselves. The Obamas claimed a total [...]

Three election law experts who have been closely tracking the Norm Coleman-Al Franken contest for Minnesota’s currently unfilled seat in the U.S. Senate weigh in today with written reactions to the final order (pdf) from the three-judge panel that heard Coleman’s complaint. All admired the order for its unanimity and deft handling of Coleman’s equal protection claims.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s presidential campaign is still trying to raise money to pay off old debts.
James Carville, the Democratic strategist and longtime Clinton supporter, today sent out a request for funds on behalf of Hillary Clinton for President. For a contribution of $5 or more, Carville writes that donors will be entered [...]

The lobbying industry enjoyed a record-breaking year in 2008, according to a report by the Center for Responsive Politics, a non-profit that tracks money in politics:

Our siblings at The Minnesota Independent have the breakdown of the first statewide Minnesota poll taken since the recount ended and former GOP Sen. Norm Coleman’s kicking and screaming began in earnest. The results are inconclusive, colored by heavy partisanship on the part of both candidates’ supporters.
The big picture: the percentage of Minnesotans who favor [...]

I hadn’t watched John Ziegler’s interview with Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin about the mean mainstream media because one of the fringe benefits of the Obama-Biden victory was the right to not listen to Sarah Palin. Watching it now, though, is jarring.
The through-line of the Palin iconography that materialized on the campaign trail like some kind [...]