Franken attorney: ‘Odds are something went wrong’
Wednesday, November 05, 2008 at 12:33 pm
- 19 Comments
David Lillehaug
“The odds are that something went wrong with respect to counting.”
That’s what Democrat Al Franken’s campaign counsel, David Lillehaug, said this morning about the prospect of a pending statewide recount in Tuesday’s U.S. Senate election in Minnesota. ”We want to make sure that each ballot that was cast is counted appropriately,” he said.
Lillehaug called the 0.03 percentage point margin separating Franken from Republican U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman “just a hair” and “unprecedented” in Minnesota history. A 1962 recount in the race for governor had a wider margin and far smaller number of votes, he said on Minnesota Public Radio.
Those comments came after Coleman spoke publicly for the first time since Election Night, when he told supporters at the state Republican Party gathering that the emerging results presaged a nail-biter (video). At a morning-after press conference, Coleman said he is “humbled and grateful for the victory that the voters gave us last night.” He acknowledged the possibility of a recount “because of my margin of victory,” but added, “It is up to [Franken] whether [a recount is worth] the tax dollars it will take to conduct.”
Coleman seemed to make reference to the bitterly fought campaign as he offered an Abraham Lincoln quote from the Civil War and urged that “we proceed in a Minnesota manner” in which any recount would be, in his words, “a respectful review.” Expressing doubt that a recount would change the result giving him a slim victory, Coleman added, “I commend my former opponents” — referring to Franken and Independence Party candidate Dean Barkley.
MPR has audio for both Coleman’s and Lillehaug’s comments today at its Polinaut blog.
19 Comments
Comment posted November 5, 2008 @ 2:06 pm
Exit polls had Franken ahead by double digits in Minneapolis and Saint Paul. Something smells fishy again and it ain’t the Mississippi.
Pingback posted November 5, 2008 @ 2:38 pm
[...] that Coleman’s slim lead will survive any fair scrutiny. Al Franken’s lawyer however, has already declared that the count is suspect. And the sole evidence appears to be the fact that Franken [...]
Comment posted November 5, 2008 @ 4:10 pm
He lost get over it. They don’t have 60 seats anyway and won’t get anything done thank God
Comment posted November 5, 2008 @ 4:13 pm
Norm urged here that “we proceed in a Minnesota manner”.
He has also suggested that Mr. Franken wasn’t campaining “the Minnesota way.”
But it’s ok if the Senator’s campaign employs a Texas based smear machine to produce his media.
Comment posted November 5, 2008 @ 4:53 pm
If Mr. Coleman were behind by 500 votes, Brian, you would be demanding the recount that is required by law and you know it.
Comment posted November 5, 2008 @ 5:05 pm
Please see Minnesota Statute 204C.35, Subd. 1. That is the STATE LAW governing automatic recounts when the vote is less than one half of one percent. Sen. Coleman continues to spread vitriol and misinformation by suggesting that Al Franken is wasting taxpayer dollars asking for a recount.
Comment posted November 5, 2008 @ 5:58 pm
Nahm is an incumbent involved in an automatic, lawful vote recount with an upcoming indictment for unlawful gifts hanging over his head. Get over it.
Comment posted November 5, 2008 @ 6:24 pm
“Exit polls had Franken ahead by double digits in Minneapolis and Saint Paul. Something smells fishy again and it ain’t the Mississippi.”
minneapolis and st. paul are so ridiculously left looking at exit polling from just those two places is called spin.
people complain about the smear tactics employed by both sides get over it, simple fact is both candidates spent around 20 million on this election, they both smeared each other.
the state will recount the votes because its required by law, i expect whichever candidate loses to accept the loss gracefully.
Comment posted November 5, 2008 @ 7:57 pm
Coleman is insinuating that Franken is being unreasonable and wasteful of taxpayer money because of the recount? Which is required by state law anyway? Unbelievable. Coleman is an ASS. He is ungracious, egotistical and a liar. And dont forget about Colemans phony claim that Franken was behind the texas lawsuit charging him with improper and illegal money transfers via his wife. Somehow, this lawsuit, which was filed by a republican CEO in Texas, is Frankens doing. Colemans story is preposterous.
Republicans and conservatives as usual deny reality and are stubborn till the end. Conservatives elected a convicted felon (sen Stevens). Have fun with that one-idiots.
The ridiculous and childish “conservative movement” is why the US, and the planet, are in such peril. The conservative movement is a movement of ignorance.
Comment posted November 6, 2008 @ 8:51 am
“The odds are that something went wrong with respect to counting.”
Did Lillehaug really say that?
Was he drunk?
Comment posted November 6, 2008 @ 9:29 am
He may or may not have been drunk, but that doesn’t change the argument: “As many as 6,000 votes which didn’t count in Tuesday’s election for US Senator in Minnesota could count in the upcoming recount.” http://www.kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=528866
COUNT BABY COUNT!
Comment posted November 6, 2008 @ 10:05 am
I must have been drunk when I wrote of Minnesota Norm’s smear machine a few comments up.
I should have disclosed the firm as Scott Howell & Co. of Dallas. http://www.scott-howell.com/
They also did spots for W.
Comment posted November 6, 2008 @ 12:28 pm
“Exit polls had Franken ahead by double digits in Minneapolis and Saint Paul.”
And that means absolutely nothing. Franken received less than 25% of the votes cast in my precinct.
Comment posted November 7, 2008 @ 2:35 am
SEND MONEY TO AL AT HIS WEBSITE FOR HIS DEFENSE ACCOUNT! DO IT NOW!!!
WE NEED TO STOP STOLEN ELECTIONS IN MINNESOTA!!
NO ONE CAN REALLY BELIEVE WE ELECTED MICHELLE BACHMANN, COLEMAN AND PAWLENTY!!!
COME ON!!!! THEY AREN’T RIGHT FOR OUR BLUE STATE VOTERS!
INVESTIGATE THESE ELECTIONS!!! GO BACK TO 2004!!
MARY KIFFMEYER WAS A REPUBLICAN OPERATIVE, I KNOW IT!!!
Comment posted November 7, 2008 @ 9:18 pm
Yah…I can’t believe anyone in their right mind would vote for
Bachmann. I think she should be the first one to be investigated
by Congress for being “UNAMERICAN”. WHAT A PHONEY, TWO FACED B—H.
Comment posted November 8, 2008 @ 11:28 am
Norm Coleman has asked that there not be a recount, to save the state money. I can’t agree more. Norm, we are all awaiting your gracious concession speech.
Comment posted November 9, 2008 @ 10:47 pm
The odds are that because we lost something was wrong with the game. Those are the words of people that we call sore losers. Every candidate that is ahead claims victory and says a recount is a waste of time and money. Every candidate that is behind says that the recount is automatic and provided by law. But to say that just because you lost, something must be wrong, is sore loser talk.
Comment posted December 1, 2008 @ 10:11 am
What went wrong is Franken. His own mother voted for Coleman (and with good reason).
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