The problem is, back on Nov. 5, when Coleman held a tentative 215-vote lead, he said that if he were Franken, he would “step back” because “the healing process is so important, the possibility of making a change of this magnitude in the voting system we have is so remote.” Take a look:

Now, with Franken up by a nearly identical margin — 225 votes — and Coleman’s chances infinitely more remote than Franken’s were in November, Coleman seems to have reversed his stance.

We’ll know for sure in a little more than an hour. At 4 p.m. ET, he is scheduled to hold a press conference. As much as Democrats — and some Republicans — are hoping for a surprise concession of defeat, it’s widely expected that he’ll announce his plans to sue. You can watch it live at The Uptake.

We’ll have an update after the press conference.

UPDATE 4:10 p.m. ET: As expected, Coleman’s not giving in. “As of today not every valid vote has been counted and some have been counted twice,” he asserted at the press conference. Again contradicting his Nov. 5 self, he said, “I think it’s really important for a six-year term that we get this right,” adding later, “Let’s take the time … to get it right.”

First, the Board voted unanimously to count the 133 ballots that went missing last week. These ballots came from a Franken-friendly precinct in Minneapolis, and Franken stood to lose a net 46 votes if they were not included.

Later in the day, another unanimous vote instructed counties to include in the recount the estimated 1,500 absentee ballots that were improperly rejected on November 4. With incumbent Sen. Norm Coleman’s official lead at 192 votes, these ballots could easily tip the balance.

Next week, the Board will review the more than 4,000 ballots that have been challenged by the two campaigns. The Franken camp believes that the resolution of the challenges will net the Democrat several hundred votes — last week, when the official count put Coleman ahead by 295 votes, Franken claimed a four-vote lead based on his campaign’s prediction for the challenged ballots.

All in all, there’s considerable reason for the Franken campaign to be optimistic. We’ll keep you posted.