‘He will be done’: Coleman confidants say he’ll stop at state courts

Cornyn: No filibuster talk

U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman won’t take his election contest to federal courts. That’s the direction unnamed Coleman confidants say the former senator is leaning, according to Roll Call. “He will be done,” one GOP source said.

Senate Republicans are still urging Coleman to fight on, even if the Minnesota Supreme Court rules in favor of Democrat Al Franken.

Roll Call says Coleman still staunchly believes in his cause but might not have the energy to carry it beyond a final setback in Minnesota courts.

(The story also says Coleman believes “that the results so far have resulted in the disenfranchisement of millions of Minnesota voters” — but Coleman has argued that a few thousand, not millions, of ballots should be counted.)

Republicans adamant against seating Franken haven’t discussed filibustering a move to seat the Democrat — not “recently” anyway, according to John Cornyn, the Texas senator who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

Democratic leaders contend — and election-law experts agree — that short of Minnesota’s high court sending the contest back to a special three-judge panel, Republicans have to hope for an ambiguous or divided decision.

That would give efforts to block Franken — either on the Senate floor or in Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s office — a boost. Pawlenty continues to make his own ambiguous statements about whether he’ll issue an election certificate once the Minnesota Supreme Court rules.

[Via TPM]