Roll Call reports that we may now be entering a truly crucial phase in the seemingly never-ending saga of the 2008 Minnesota Senate election — indeed, it might actually be ending fairly soon, if Norm Coleman doesn’t have the heart to keep going.
On the one hand, Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), the NRSC chairman who has said the race could take “years” to resolve, says the party would continue to keep on supporting Norm — and would fight any effort to seat Franken even if the Minnesota Supreme Court orders his certification. “I personally think it’d be a mistake to seat anybody while the appeals are pending,” said Cornyn.
However, Roll Call says: “Sources close to Coleman say the former Senator would likely give up his legal battle and accept defeat if the Minnesota Supreme Court decides in Franken’s favor. That’s because Coleman anticipates that Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) would ultimately sign Franken’s certification papers.” The issue here is that Coleman might not have the energy to keep fighting this in federal court — as it is, he’s already put his political reputation on the line with the state court battle.
A ruling from the state Supremes is expected to happen some time in the next few weeks, and is universally expected to be a strong decision in favor of Al Franken.
