Booby prize for Coleman? Ex-senator status is helping Ted Stevens go free

It’s not all bad news for Norm Coleman. One reason Attorney General Eric Holder says he’s dropping charges against former Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens is that Stevens is no longer a senator. Despite extraordinary legal efforts Coleman is also no longer a senator — but he is a player in two matters under federal investigation. That suggests a potential silver lining if Coleman loses his bid to regain his Senate seat. The FBI is probing allegations in a pair of civil lawsuits filed last fall that Coleman benefactor Nasser Kazeminy funneled $75,000 from a company he controlled to the company where Coleman’s wife Laurie works, intending to line the senator’s pockets. A second former executive in Kazeminy’s company gave sworn testimony about the plot last month.

The U.S. Secret Service is investigating a massive leak of data on donors and others — including credit card numbers — from Coleman’s campaign Web site in January.

A court ruling yesterday made Coleman’s legal challenge to Al Franken’s recount victory less likely to succeed.