Word: frankener
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
Here's the running tally so far in the seemingly endless battle between Democratic challenger Al Franken and Republican incumbent Norm Coleman over Minnesota's still unfilled U.S. Senate seat: nearly 3 million votes cast, one recount, two court appeals, seven months, 10 judges, 142 witnesses, $13 million in legal fees and 19,181 pages of filings stacked in binders reaching over 21 feet. But in reality, for all parties concerned, the prospect of cementing or blocking a 60-vote majority for the Democrats in the Senate appears to be priceless...
...That much was clear on Monday, as the Minnesota Supreme Court heard an hour of oral arguments on Coleman's second appeal of a statewide recount that took away his initial lead of 215 votes and handed the advantage to Franken. The January recount had given Franken a 225-vote lead, and a three-judge panel expanded that lead to 312 votes in March, deciding Coleman's first appeal in Franken's favor. No one knows when the state's supreme court will issue its decision on Coleman's second appeal, but legal experts say it should be fairly soon...
...last month blocked Obama's appointment to the No. 2 slot at the Department of Interior, for example - not over the nominee's qualifications, but over anger at some of Obama's reversals of Bush Administration policies in that department. Such votes tend to be along party lines, and Franken's arrival could smooth the path for some of these nominees. "We have 30 or so executive nominations, nearly all uncontroversial, just sitting there in the Senate with the threat of GOP filibusters, which at minimum take a lot of time," says Norm Ornstein, a congressional scholar at the American...
...Global Warming The House last week passed its version of landmark climate-change legislation, which the Senate is scheduled to pick up this summer. On his website, Franken declares his support for renewable energy: "I think we need a new 'Apollo project' - this time to fundamentally change our energy policy and end our reliance on foreign oil." But Franken will also be representing Minnesota: his website lists much longer and more detailed positions on agriculture. In the House, the rural caucus - big supporters of ethanol - was among the measure's biggest hurdles, and Franken is a big ethanol devotee. Though...
...priority for organized labor, this bill, which would make it easier for workers to form unions, failed to overcome a filibuster in 2007 by a vote of 51-48. Since then the Democrats have added seven seats, not counting the defection of former GOP Senator Arlen Spector. Franken has strongly declared his support for the measure. "Not only will I vote for the Employee Free Choice Act, I'll proudly co-sponsor it," he says on his website. A vote is expected later this year, and this is one where Franken could make the difference...