I would not be overly excited. Brutus, Judas Iscariot and Campoare were 
all "disciples". Prophet or not he surely needs divine intervention to 
keep them in line.

Malanding



Haruna Darbo wrote:
>
>
>   Courtesy AP news. Haruna.
>   Franken Wins Minnesota Senate Race
>
> By BRIAN BAKST
> AP
> ST. PAUL, Minn. (June 30) - Al Franken ascended Tuesday from the ranks 
> of former "Saturday Night Live" comedians to an even more exclusive 
> club, outlasting Republican Norm Coleman in an eight-month recount and 
> courtroom saga to win a seat in the U.S. Senate.
> Franken's victory gives Democrats control of 60 seats in the Senate — 
> the critical number needed to overcome Republican filibusters. When 
> Franken is seated, which could come as early as next week, his party 
> will have a majority not reached on either side of the aisle in some 
> three decades.
> Skip over this content 
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>
> Skip over this content 
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>
> "When you win an election this close, you know not one bit of effort 
> went to waste," Franken said. "The way I see it, I'm not going to 
> Washington to be the 60th Democratic senator, I'm going to Washington 
> to be the second senator from Minnesota."
> Coleman conceded the election hours after a unanimous state Supreme 
> Court ruled that Franken — who moved into politics with books poking 
> fun at conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh — should be certified the 
> winner. In doing so, he pulled the plug on a bitter election that was 
> ultimately decided by 312 votes out of nearly 2.9 million cast.
> "Franni and I are so thrilled that we can finally celebrate this 
> victory," Franken told reporters outside his downtown Minneapolis town 
> house, where he was accompanied by his wife. He added: "I can't wait 
> to ge t started."
> Coleman could have carried his fight into federal court, but it was 
> unlikely to overturn the state Supreme Court's decision. The prospect 
> created months of intrigue over whether Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty 
> would sign an election certificate for Franken if Coleman was still 
> pursuing appeals, a possibility that became moot with Coleman's 
> concession. Pawlenty signed the certificate Tuesday evening.
> "The Supreme Court has made its decision and I will abide by the 
> results," Coleman said outside his St. Paul home. Appearing relaxed 
> and upbeat, Coleman said he had congratulated Franken, was at peace 
> with the decision and had no regrets about the fight.
> "Sure I wanted to win," said Coleman, who declined to talk about his 
> future and brushed aside a question about whether he would run for 
> governor in 2010. "I thought we had a better case. But the court has 
> spoken."
> Skip over this content 
> <http://news.aol.com/article/franken-minnesota-senate-seat/438280?icid=main%7Chtmlws-sb%7Cdl1%7Clink2%7Chttp%3A%2F%2Fnews.aol.com%2Farticle%2Ffranken-minnesota-senate-seat%2F438280#axs497> 
>
>
> After Coleman ended election night ahead by several hundred votes, he 
> called on Franken to concede. The Democrat refused, and the thin 
> margin triggered an automatic recount that ultimately put him ahead by 
> 225 votes. Coleman challenged those results in January, but a review 
> by a three-judge panel expanded Franken's lead to 312 votes by the 
> time it ended in April.
> Coleman appealed to the state's high court later that month, arguing 
> election officials across Minnesota were inconsistent with rules on 
> absentee ballots, unfairly robbing thousands of people of their votes. 
> But the state's high court soundly rejected that reasoning, voting 5-0 
> that there was no reason to apply a more lenient standard in judging 
> absentees, as Coleman wanted, than the law required.
> "I think what you had was 12 judges look at this through the 
> canvassing process, through the recount and throughout the trial, and 
> all agreeing unanimously that I won more votes than anybody else in 
> the election," Franken said. "I think that is conclusive, and I think 
> that this has been as thorough, as painstaking, as transparent as 
> possible."
> Franken, 58, has come a long way from the goofy 1980s "SNL" skits 
> where he mocked politicians, portrayed the self-affirming Stuart 
> Smalley and pranced around in little more than a Speedo. His career 
> evolved in the 1990s with books harpooning Limbaugh and he later 
> gained a liberal following as a radio show host on the "Air America" 
> network.
> Minnesota has put an entertainer in office before. In 1998, former pro 
> wrestler Jesse Ventura captured the governor's office with an outsider 
> third-party run. Ventura served one term, then resumed private life 
> without seeking re-election.
> Franken declared his candidacy more than two years ago, and he and 
> Coleman combined to spend $50 million in pursuit of the seat. That's 
> more than double what was spent in 2002, when Coleman won the seat 
> that had been held by the late Paul Wellstone.
> For Democrats to exercise their newfound strength with Franken in 
> office, they will need to be as united in support of a bill as 
> Republicans are in opposition, regardless of regional differences, 
> ideology, or political self-interest.
> The situation is further complicated by the illness of two senior 
> Democrats who have been absent from the Capitol for weeks. West 
> Virginia Sen. Robert C. Byrd was recently released from a hospital 
> after undergoing treatment for a sta ph infection, and Massachusetts 
> Sen. Edward M. Kennedy is battling brain cancer. It is not known when, 
> or whether, either will return to the Capitol.
> An early test of the Democrats could come next month, when health care 
> legislation reaches the Senate floor. Democrats have been seeking 
> agreement on a bipartisan plan with a handful of Republicans. But if 
> those talks falter, they and the White House may end up needing 60 
> votes to advance one of the Obama administration's highest priorities.
> In the months since Election Day, both Franken and Coleman kept low 
> profiles. After Coleman's term expired in January, he took a job as a 
> consultant and strategic adviser to the Republican Jewish Coalition, a 
> group that advocates in Washington on Jewish issues.
> Franken has taken some steps to ensure a quick transition, appointing 
> a staff in waiting that includes communications staffers, a chief of 
> staff and a state director. He said Tuesday he had been told his 
> assignments would include the Judiciary Committee, a role that would 
> put him immediately in the thick of confirmation hearings over Supreme 
> Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor.
> Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar said Franken told her Tuesday he's "ready 
> to get started immediately." The Democrat said Franken is expected to 
> immediately dive into the health care debat e.
> "This victory was hard earned for Al Franken and his family," she 
> said. "Franni Franken had a suitcase packed, ready to go to Washington 
> at a moment's notice, like you do when you're waiting to have a baby. 
> She had a toothbrush, clothes, all of that, ready to go."
> /Associated Press Special Correspondent David Espo and AP Writer Henry 
> C. Jackson contributed to this report from Washington. AP Writer 
> Patrick Condon contributed from Minneapolis./
> Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. The information contained in the 
> AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise 
> distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
>
> 2009-06-30 14:18:48
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
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