# How's Al Franken's Senate bid going? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 12, 2008, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239 "2008-02-12T01:57:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 42
**Author:** ![Beadalin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Beadalin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beadalin)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2009, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/821 "2009-04-16T18:26:36Z")
**[Poll: Minnesotans want Coleman to concede](http://www.politico.com/blogs/scorecard/0409/Poll_Minnesotans_want_Coleman_to_concede.html)** > [@](#): > > The poll showed that 63 percent of Minnesota voters said they believe Coleman should concede the race to Democrat Al Franken, with just 37 percent supporting further appeals. And 59 percent said they want Gov. Tim Pawlenty to sign the certificate declaring Franken the winner. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2009, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/822 "2009-04-16T18:33:03Z")
I demand that poll be recounted. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2009, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/823 "2009-04-16T19:02:56Z")
Clearly, non-citizens infiltrated the poll. Everyone polled should be required to produce a certificate of live birth. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2009, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/824 "2009-04-16T19:44:51Z")
A certificate of live birth isn’t sufficient. It has to be a Birth Certificate (with caps). ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2009, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/825 "2009-04-16T20:05:34Z")
and it would unfairly disenfranchise those who were born dead. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2009, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/826 "2009-04-16T20:30:29Z")
This discriminates against the cerebrophagic community (they prefer not to be called “zombies”). ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2009, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/827 "2009-04-16T20:32:54Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > This discriminates against the cerebrophagic community (they prefer not to be called “zombies”). **supervenusfreak** and I had some fun last Sunday. He greeted me in the morning with “Happy Zombie Jesus Day!” and I responded with “Souls! Sooouls!” Okay, it was funny when it happened. Shut up. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/828 "2009-04-18T04:11:49Z")
Franken has won every stupid contest Coleman has put him through. Every recount and court case, will Coleman get the message? ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/829 "2009-04-18T05:21:10Z")
I’m picturing the Minnesota Supreme Court already sitting around and chatting about this. They know it’s coming. Coleman’s attorney’s stroll to the door on the tenth day, briefs in hand, and knock. “No,” says the Court. “Go away.” There’s got to be some chance that the court won’t even accept the appeal. The votes have been scrutinized to death by now. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/830 "2009-04-18T05:25:28Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > Clearly, non-citizens infiltrated the poll. Everyone polled should be required to produce a certificate of live birth. That will be a problem for the Lizard people. ---
**Author:** ![MeDrewNotYou](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@MeDrewNotYou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeDrewNotYou)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/831 "2009-04-18T07:44:28Z")
> [@Frank](#): > > I’m picturing the Minnesota Supreme Court already sitting around and chatting about this. They know it’s coming. > > Coleman’s attorney’s stroll to the door on the tenth day, briefs in hand, and knock. “No,” says the Court. “Go away.” > > There’s got to be some chance that the court won’t even accept the appeal. The votes have been scrutinized to death by now. Does the court actually have that option? I know the US Supremes would have to issue a writ of cert to hear a case, is MN similar or do all appeals automatically get heard? ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/832 "2009-04-18T13:44:24Z")
I expect that the MSC is required to take and hear the appeal, since the whole thing is a statutory construct. Just be grateful they don’t make it go through an intermediate level of appellate courts. There is no way that Coleman will drop this thing short of the final possible straw to clutch. The Republicans in Minnesota seem dead set against letting Sen. Franken take his seat in Washington, D.C. They will throw their sabots in as much machinery as they can, regardless of the damage it does. This is what American politics is coming too; I hate to say it, but I don’t think Minnesota is unique in having this sort of situation be possible. ---
**Author:** ![MeDrewNotYou](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@MeDrewNotYou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeDrewNotYou)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/833 "2009-04-18T14:32:34Z")
> [@DSYoungEsq](#): > > \…This is what American politics is coming too; I hate to say it, but I don’t think Minnesota is unique in having this sort of situation be possible. Man, [I hate it when people are right.](http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/4/17/05945/1169) ---
**Author:** ![MeDrewNotYou](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@MeDrewNotYou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeDrewNotYou)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/834 "2009-04-18T14:51:02Z")
I see now that there’s already [a Pit thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=514443) on the subject of the NY-20 recount. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/835 "2009-04-18T22:18:54Z")
> [@DSYoungEsq](#): > > I expect that the MSC is required to take and hear the appeal, since the whole thing is a statutory construct. Just be grateful they don’t make it go through an intermediate level of appellate courts. I believe that the Election Contest Hearing, held before the 3 Judges appointed by the Supreme Court, is considered already at an appellate level, so an appeal from it comes directly to the Minnesota Supreme Court. ---
**Author:** ![yorick73](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/b5a626/32.png) [@yorick73](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yorick73)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/836 "2009-04-18T22:23:01Z")
Here’s an interesting article > **[Minnesota's Missing Votes - WSJ](https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB124000875842430603)** > > Some Senate absentee ballots are more equal than others. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/837 "2009-04-18T22:30:44Z")
> [@yorick73](#): > > Here’s an interesting article > > [http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124000875842430603.html](http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124000875842430603.html) Was that written by Coleman’s lawyers? ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/838 "2009-04-18T22:34:26Z")
> [@Frank](#): > > Was that written by Coleman’s lawyers? Doesn’t have to be. It’s a Wall Street Journal editorial…they make Coleman AND his lawyers look like dirty fucking hippies. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/839 "2009-04-18T22:43:38Z")
> [@Frank](#): > > Was that written by Coleman’s lawyers? Quite possibly. It certainly shows that the authors have not bothered to even read the lengthy & quite detailed ruling by the Contest Judges. They say “the state was awash with evidence of duplicate ballot counting, newly discovered ballots, missing ballots, illegal voting, and wildly diverse standards as to which votes were counted.” So it’s odd that Coleman’s lawyers weren’t able to find any of this evidence to present in Court, or even to give any specific examples of any of this. (Not just my opinion, but the Court ruling.) But then, the previous WSJ editorial on this went on at length about “ballots left overnight in a election workers’ car”, which was just a complete fabrication made up by a Republican blogger. Seems like the Wall Street Journal gets its’ information by reading blogs on the Internet, and reprints it without bothering to do any fact-checking. Is it any wonder that newspapers are going out of business? ---
**Author:** ![yorick73](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/b5a626/32.png) [@yorick73](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yorick73)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239/840 "2009-04-18T23:03:52Z")
Just for the record I have not really been keeping up with this and have no opinion one way or the other. Just found the story interesting. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239.md?page=41) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-al-frankens-senate-bid-going/437239.md?page=43)