Reid Meeting With Al Franken To Discuss Upcoming Legislation
Harry Reid's office just announced that he'll be meeting with Al Franken later today, and will be holding a photo opportunity prior to the meeting itself.
Reid's office informs TPMDC that the two of them will be discussing the upcoming legislative agenda -- essentially a recognition by Reid of Franken as the legitimate Senator-in-waiting from Minnesota, and an apparent desire to make sure Franken is ready to get to work once he eventually takes the seat.
Of course, Franken might otherwise just be a plain old freshman Senator were it not for a unique quirk of Minnesota election law, which has thus far allowed Norm Coleman to bottle up Franken's 225-vote win in the Minnesota Senate race and prevent Franken from being issued a certificate of election.
Late Update: The Huffington Post reports that Coleman is also making his way around Capitol Hill, in order to speak with Washington reporters.
Josh
Matt
Eric
Brian
That's not a unique quirk...it's a unique safeguard.
Time to apply the "if the shoe were on the other foot" standard here?
January 21, 2009 2:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
I have to agree. It isn't a quirk. Without that ability to challenge, the 1962 gubernatorial recount that established our precedents and caused the legislature to codify the specific procedures that made this recount clear from the beginning would never have happened. We would have been like other states, going to court over whether there would be a recount at all and every procedure being litigated, and the whole thing open to theft. I don't believe Coleman has a case, but it's better he exercise this right, and thereby give legitimacy to Franken's win. my only real concern is somehow this will get into the federal courts and get twisted by bushie judges.
January 21, 2009 3:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
The quirk is not the ability to challenge. It is the ability to keep the official winner from being certified as long as the challenge is active.
This opens up the possibility of abuse by the loser, who can keep the winner from being seated as long as he can keep an active challenge going. I can’t say for sure that Ex-Senator Coleman is abusing the system, but I think he is at least on the very edge of it.
January 21, 2009 4:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
The alternative, then, is to seat the declared winner on a provisional basis. Which would be fine if "provisional" was perfectly understood and accepted by all involved.
But as possession is 9/10 of the law, I am afraid that seating the declared winner on a provisional basis would cast a heavy shadow over the court challenge (regardless of its merits).
My solution...place a fire under the benches that those judges are sitting on, and have them slap down any attempted abuse of the system post haste.
January 21, 2009 4:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
The MN law provides very strict limits on how quickly a challenge has to be filed and how long the process should take. The whole process should take no more than a month which doesn't strike me as an excessively long time to make sure they get it right. Actually, I think the way it's been handled in MN has been exemplary and should be a model for other states. (Yes, I'm looking at YOU, Florida.)
January 21, 2009 4:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
Coleman is making his rounds in Washington today as well.
January 21, 2009 2:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
Is anybody actually speaking to him?
January 21, 2009 5:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
According to "The Hill," they're letting him use his old office until Feb 4 in order to "close out unfinished business."
I like that phrase..."close out."
And what business is that? Says Marc Ambinder...."Norm Coleman was spotted walking out of his vacant office around lunchtime today, according to two sources. Apparently his office is strewn with boxes and bubble wrap."
http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/mt/mt-tb.cgi/41633
January 21, 2009 10:56 PM | Reply | Permalink