Democrats: $1 a Day Sends Norm Coleman Away

Former Senator asking donors to wait on endorsing other candidates

(NEWSER) - Norm Coleman has given up the fight for Minnesota’s US Senate seat, but he may be mulling a run for governor. Coleman has been calling his major donors, asking them “to hold off making any commitments to other candidates,” a University of Minnesota political scientist tells the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "This does not mean he's going to run," he said. "But he's trying to freeze them." More»

Lawmakers facing tough 2010 battles think she'd hurt them

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin may not spend much of her newfound free time campaigning: Many GOP lawmakers facing tough 2010 contests don't want to be associated with the soon-to-be-ex-governor, who they fear will galvanize liberals, the Hill reports. One anonymous Republican said that if Palin came to his district, his opponent would “probably be doing a dance of joy.” More»

During campaign he was wonky and even a bit boring

(NEWSER) - Liberals may be hoping for biting wit and conservatives for embarrassing shtick, but according to Bob Benenson of CQPolitics, Al Franken is likely to disappoint both when he finally arrives in the Senate. Throughout his campaign Franken displayed an impressive mastery of Minnesota issues and made clear his candidacy was not a lark. Some Dems even began to think of the SNL star as boring. More»

Senator-elect stresses loyalty to state, downplays Dem. supermajority

(NEWSER) - Al Franken said he was “thrilled and honored by the faith Minnesotans placed in me” after the state Supreme Court declared him the winner of the Senate recount, CNN reports. "I'm so excited to finally be able to get to work " said Franken, who added that he got a "very gracious" phone call from Norm Coleman. In his news conference, Franken struck a cordial tone, saying he would stand on principle when necessary but would be willing to "compromise" for the good of constituents. More»

(NEWSER) - Norm Coleman isn't going to drag out Minnesota's Senate fight any longer. Coleman conceded the race to Al Franken today, hours after the state's Supreme Court decreed that Democrat Franken was the rightful winner of November's election, reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "Further litigation damages the unity of our state," said Coleman. "The future today is that we have a new United States senator." More»