Franken Camp Planned Ahead For Recount
The Franken campaign is now going public with one major reason for why they handled the recount so effectively: They were prepared well in advance for the possibility. In a profile by MinnPost of Franken's general election campaign manager Stephanie Schriock, we find out that Schriock had a recount plan fully drawn up months in advance, putting it into motion immediately the day after the election.
Schriock had taken a similar tack in her campaign work in 2006, when she managed Jon Tester's campaign for Senate from Montana. Correctly predicting that the race would be close -- Tester won by less than a point, and wasn't able to actually claim victory until the next day -- Schriock had drawn up a full recount plan just in case. In fact, one of the attorneys involved at the time was none other than DNC attorney Marc Elias, who later became Al Franken's lead attorney.
"There are two reasons Al won the recount," said Elias. "He had more lawful votes and because of the organization that Stephanie has overseen."
Compare this to the general consensus that the Coleman camp didn't handle themselves well here -- though granted, this is something of a tautology considering that Coleman lost the recount. But here's what conservative blogger (and Minnesotan) Scott Johnson from Powerline writes, in a new article in National Review:
From the outset of the post-election process, the Coleman campaign was remarkably passive in its approach to the recount. The Coleman team appeared to improvise strategy from day to day and spent time spinning the Franken campaign's activities. They did not appear to have a handle on what was happening or on what was likely to happen. I found getting information from the Coleman team like pulling teeth. For a while I thought they were withholding information for some reason. By the end of the recount, I concluded that they simply didn't know what was happening.
Josh
Matt
Eric
Brian
Who would you want representing you?
April 8, 2009 4:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
One of the few positive outcomes of decades of GOP sleazy, corrupt political tactics is that a new generation of Democratic strategists was born to combat it.
April 8, 2009 4:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
And boy are they elite.
April 8, 2009 6:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Totally 1337. Coleman is for n00bz.
April 9, 2009 1:37 AM | Reply | Permalink
Interesting article; just proves the point to me that R's are really just incompetent. WAs Coleman so arrogant that he just assumed he'd win, even when polling showed him very close with Franken near Nov. 4? So arrogant or incompetent that he thought he could just kind of "wing it" and have no real plan or strategy for his election contest? New generation of Democratic strategists, indeed. And I would want Franken representing me--as a Minnesotan I know how hard he worked for two years to get himself out to meet and greet the people. He cares about the middle class, for all his wealth. And his Harvard education, keen wit, knowledge of the issues and concern for our country will serve him well once he's sworn in!
April 8, 2009 4:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
I find it completely unsurprising that the Franken campaign was prepared for a recount, and pretty surprising that the Coleman campaign wasn't. It is pretty bizarre how bad Republicans have gotten in campaigning in so many locales. Did they actually believe they had established a "permanent Republican majority" and they could just coast?
April 8, 2009 4:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes.
April 8, 2009 5:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hell, they still do. Look at what's going on in Congress.
April 8, 2009 6:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
Why woulde any candidate want to put Ginsberg out front as a spokesman? I know why, they think he is a spinner. But spin is bullsh*t and you can't polish a cowpie.
April 8, 2009 6:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
The MythBusters did a fairly good job of making cowstuff shine
April 8, 2009 8:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
Weird sh!t in MN. I would have thought the MN laws would have been setup so that something like this would have settled in a more timely manner. Looks like Coleman will be disputing this on the next go around in 5 1/2 years from now.
Anyway, After the election experiences over the preceding 8 years, the Dems learned, not only to BE prepared for the bizarre, but HOW to be prepared; and likewise, the Repubs learned that the courts they hate so much would intercede on to their benefit. Looks like brain damaged Bush failed in fully corrupting the DOJ and it the jury is still out on the Judiciary.
April 8, 2009 9:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
From Election Night forward it was clear that the legal folk working for Franken had read Minnesota Election Law very carefully, knew that the whole recount process was laid out in detail in legal statutes, frequently backed up with case law, and that very little of what was to transpire would depend on any official making up process or rules on the fly, and the courts, while they would play a role, had clear directions as to what to do when.
That is the essential difference between Minnesota and Florida 2000, and indeed many other states. I don't think any of Coleman's legal staff understood this -- though I am surprised at Fritz Knaak, who served in the legislature long enough to have encountered one or another legislative recount, or one or another modification of election law during the early 90's when we did a major process modernization.
The Republicans depend far too heavily on a Public Relations Strategy -- the ability to launch claims, true or not, into the public media, and use that to control and shape processes and perceptions. It worked for them in Florida in 2000, so they assume they can run the same script again, but they never thought ahead -- never asked the question whether that strategy fit the Minnesota Culture, or indeed the Minnesota Law.
April 9, 2009 1:43 AM | Reply | Permalink
I lived in Minnesota for many years. I am not surprised at all that the no BS culture won out over the all BS republican spin. The recount was very public and very fair. Franken won by having more legally cast votes plain and simple. Coleman could not pull votes out of his ass, he was actually held to a simple legal standard and lost. The final count had Franken over 300. Enough. Done.
I must also add that the usual republican tactic near an election is to make it as difficult as possible for the democrats to register and vote. Any American with an ounce of patriotism should be offended that other Americans have fought and died to secure the right to free elections and republicans think it is OK to screw poor and minority voters out of that right. They have no shame and when they loose fair and square they cry about all the votes not being counted. How sickeningly unAmerican.
April 9, 2009 2:40 AM | Reply | Permalink
Imagine that, they actually TRIED. As opposed to the Coleman camp and the GOP who was used to just showing up and winning. See what happens when rules are actually FOLLOWED?
April 9, 2009 4:43 AM | Reply | Permalink
The Minnesota Supreme Court, when it refused to order that Franken be seated before the election contest was completed, did a lot of thinking, and writing about when an election must be certified. In short, there's not a lot of doubt that Pawlenty must sign the certificate when the state court contest is over. Minnesota Law (Minn. Stat. § 204C.40, subd. 2) does not allow him to wait "years" for Norms federal suits to be finished. Here's what the Minnesota Supreme Court said with Slip Opinion Page citations.
Page 16:
Page 11:
Seems pretty clear, and good for Al, that Governor Pawlenty must certify the election after the upcoming state supreme court appeal. Without that certification, Pawlenty is not acting in the manner which the law specifically requires, and denying his constituents their second US senator. Would Minnesotans like that?
So, the only way for Norm to use up his newly found $30,000 ceiling on individual election contest contributions is to get an order from the federal courts that prevents Pawlenty from issuing any certificate. If the order, called a "stay" is denied, the fight is over and Al gets seated as a matter of law. Let's all hope that Al's lawyers are researching the federal stay cases for every argument.
Interestingly, Pawlenty today is quoted agreeing with my analysis that the certification only waits for the conclusion of state court appeals, but expects it to take a "few more months". http://washingtonindependent.com/37489/pawlenty-a-few-more-months-to-resolve-franken-coleman-standoff
April 9, 2009 8:32 AM | Reply | Permalink
I watched Pawlenty last night on Rachel's show, and he seemed, to me, that he was NOT going to sign any certificate. First, he seemed to say that the courts could issue a 'stay', seemingly indefinately, and then trotted out the "equal protection clause" argument. He then stated that 'after all, 'equal protection' is under Federal court jurisdiction and must be addressed, because how would 'Rachel' like it if she cast a vote and it was not counted'.
So, I think he is leaning towards NOT signing the election certificate and is throwing his lot (running for President in 2012) in with Cornyn and the Senate Re-election committee. He is in a VERY tough position, so let's see what he's made of. Republicans have no problem lying, and ignoring the law when it comes to their benefit!
I really doubt that the U. S. Supreme Court would take the case. I think Roberts is much more cautious and more interested than Rehnquist, in his popularity on the court to allow this 'more toxic by the minute' case to be heard in his court. But then...
April 9, 2009 9:33 AM | Reply | Permalink
It's unfair to suggest that the Coleman camp had no strategy for the recount. They DID have a strategy in place-- it's called whining.
They have executed on their strategy flawlessly, but to no apparent avail.
April 9, 2009 6:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Weird sh!t in MN. I would have thought the MN laws would have been setup so that something like this would have settled in a more timely manner. Looks like Coleman will be disputing this on the next go around in 5 1/2 years from now.
Anyway, After the election experiences over the preceding 8 years, the Dems learned, not only to BE prepared for the bizarre, but HOW to be prepared; and likewise, the Repubs learned that the courts they hate so much would intercede on to their benefit. Looks like brain damaged Bush failed in fully corrupting the DOJ and it the jury is still out on the Judiciary.
m65 kamagra
June 6, 2010 7:55 AM | Reply | Permalink