Norm Coleman Legal Fight To Bring In Cash For Dems

For the first time since the Minnesota Senate recount began, national Democrats are raising money off of Norm Coleman's numerous legal appeals and political obstinacy, urging people to donate a dollar a day until the former Senator concedes the election.

The "Dollar a Day to Make Norm Go Away" campaign is being launched by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, a newly formed group designed to get progressive candidates into elected office. But it's getting a friendly push by Democracy for America, Howard Dean's political arm, which will blast the petition to its more than one million members (PCCC will send to an additional 23,000).

The goal is two-fold: capitalize off of the brewing anger among Democrats over what's happening in Minnesota while cleverly pushing up the incentives for the national Republican Party to abandon Coleman's appeal effort.

"Think about how this Dollar A Day will change the game," reads the email being sent to DFA and PCCC members. "If thousands of people sign up, and Republicans up for re-election in 2010 see the progressives who are out to defeat them get an infusion of donations each day that Coleman is obstinate, what do you think will happen?"

"Republicans in DC know Al Franken won," says the email. "But they are bankrolling Norm Coleman's continued court challenges in Minnesota and are encouraging him to drag this thing out forever. For them, it's worth it to keep shelling out money to block the seating of Senator Franken. Put simply, the incentives are all wrong. So let's set the incentives right."

The process by which the Dollar a Day campaign emerged is worth noting, and indicative of the diverse strategies Democrats have pursued in a recount that has largely been in the hands of the courts. Adam Green, co-founder of PCCC, had pitched the idea in an entry on the progressive website Open Left, primarily as a critique of the type of call to actions that were coming out of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Officials at Democracy for America saw his complaint, Green said, and latched onto the campaign, not only offering their vast email list but agreeing to send the proceeds PCCC's way.

The outcome of the campaign is, of course, dependent on Coleman's internal political calculations. The former Senator is expected to appeal the latest three-judge-panel ruling that Al Franken won the most votes to the Minnesota State Supreme Court. From there he could take it to federal courts, in which case the process might drag out for weeks if not months.

So could the Dollar A Day campaign drive some Democratic donors into poverty? Not likely. The petition allows you to "limit the number of weeks you donate, in case you worry Norm is completely delusional."

Comments

[HuffyAmy]

08:48 AM on 04/20/2009

I don't understand why they can't go ahead and seat the winner, Al Franken, since the thing has been appealed anyway. You can be sure that repubs would be out there with their bibles swearing in Coleman if he had a rat's chance of winning.

[rich misty]

10:26 PM on 04/19/2009

Norm Coleman is a dingleberr­y.

[Jforbes4]

12:59 PM on 04/19/2009

Please call-out the \Minnesota "tradition­al newspapers­" on their biased attempts to skew public opinion against Al Franken!

Both the Pioneer Press and StarTribun­e endorsed Norm Coleman and their coverage is ludicrous in their attempts to sway public opinion as a factor in the blocking of Franken from his senate seat. Especially the StarTribun­e, which was sold by local interests to a New York investment firm.

This week's court ruling clarified that Coleman is liable for Franken's legal fees. So what is the lead story in the Star Tribune Saturday? \Al Franken owes 1.4 million for legal fees.

http://www­.startribu­ne.com/pol­itics/nati­onal/senat­e/43205717­.html:

Accordingl­y, IT IS ORDERED that: 1) Contestant­s' (former Senator Norm Coleman) Notice of Contest is dismissed with prejudice. 2) Contestee'­s countercla­ims are dismissed without prejudice as moot; 3) Pursuant to Minn Stat 209.09, subd 3, costs of the contest must be paid by Contestant­s, and Contestee (Senator-E­lect Al Franken) and the Court shall prove up the applicable costs by avidavit after all proceeding­s in this matter are concluded; and 4) For the reasons stated in the Court's Order of March 2, 2009, imposing a sanction on Contestant­s, Contestee is awarded his reasonable costs and attorneys' fees in connection with Contestant­s failure to disclose, such costs and fees to be proved up by affidavit. 5) Any request for relief in these proceeding­s not specifical­ly granted herein is denied, let judgment be entered accordingl­y.

[bjbold]

10:55 AM on 04/19/2009

I have noticed recently that Norm has not been able to look into the cameras. Hmmmmmm.
I live in Mn. and so there is lots of coverage of him. Hmmmmmmm.

[Cynth]

10:00 AM on 04/19/2009

Even if remotelt or hypothetic­ally succeeds, it will be a phyrric victory at this point. Coleman and his GOP backers can't see the forest for the trees.

[Aquest]

10:31 AM on 04/19/2009

I agree that Franken won the election and needs to be seated.

However, I'm positive that Coleman knows he has lost the election (he has taken a new job). He is conspiring with Republican­s to delay Franken being seated as long as possible. I'm sure Coleman has been promised something, which will be 'disclosed­' sometime after Franken is seated.

In addition, the people of Minnasota have been poorly represente­d a lot longer then 5 months. They have been poorly represente­d since Coleman has been a Senator.

[blaising]

09:05 AM on 04/19/2009

Grow a pair, dems! Franken won. Get Coleman the hell out of my government­!!

[HLL]

09:03 AM on 04/19/2009

A few days ago Coleman complained that the media shouldn't have reported that he funneled campaign money into his wife's bank account. Then we heard his legal bills were galactic. But obstructio­nism cuts three ways: It penalizes the people of Minnesota who have not been properly represente­d in the Senate for 5 months, it penalizes the state of Minnesota who will have to pay the freight on much of Coleman's spurious legal appeals, and it penalizes the rightful Senator from Minnesota, Al Franken. Coleman lost 3 expensive and painstakin­g re-counts, and he lost the judges decision. He has lost this Senate race and the only who doesn't know it is him. Coleman has put his own ambition above his state and his country. Time to concede. SEAT SENATOR FRANKEN NOW.

I donated $21 to the cause of ending this farce now. Here's the link to A Dollar A Day To Make Norm Go Away: https://se­rvices.myn­gp.com/NGP­OnlineServ­ices/contr­ibution.as­px?X=EjMWb­GdwzawSctQ­o5b28qonrR­4zZ72jHJx%­2bkZkPSHMY­%3d

[mouselion]

09:15 AM on 04/19/2009

This isn't about Norm Coleman making it to the senate. It's about the GOP keeping a duly elected Democrat from his seat. It's just more of their historic dirty tactics -- they would never have been in power the way they are without this approach.

[Cynth]

10:06 AM on 04/19/2009

Good points. Can someone tell this non-Minnes­otan how their citizens are viewing/re­sponding to this circus?

[SangZe]

09:01 AM on 04/19/2009

Perhaps the dims will get some cash, but they aren't going to get another senator this term.

[Mustang Sally]

09:59 AM on 04/19/2009

Look who's dim...

[manicore]

08:59 AM on 04/19/2009

The longer Norm. holds on the more Long term Damage he is doing to his So called
Political Career. Right Now as it stands most Minnesotan­'s would not Elect him for
the City Dog Catcher.

[BiffThiele]

08:33 AM on 04/19/2009

I am fairly certain that Joseph Upton doesn't know anything about Al Franken, any more than he can recognize hypocrisy. He is simply a sore loser, like Norm Coleman and rather than accept that his party screwed things up, he is struggling to find fault with Liberals, in order to justify his closed minded principles and make himself fell better. You can't fault these people's limited ability to view the world as it is. It's who they are. They will always focus on what they want, whether it is rational or not, because they have been programmed to ignore their own party's hypocrisy. They can't think for themselves­, so they have to follow the party. Sad as it is, I am perfectly content to sit back and watch them and their tea party/Terr­i Schiavo/Gl­en Beck mentality follow Rush Limbaugh right off the cliff.

[miketothad]

08:06 AM on 04/19/2009

Norm is effectivel­y ratcheting up Al Gore's cool points. You all are crackin me up.

[bigben1986]

07:54 AM on 04/19/2009

Come on Minnesotan­s demand to end this nonesense. You don't have representa­tion in the senate because of Norm Coleman. Demand that he step aside so you can continue your business in Washington­. It's been 4 months already.

[Joseph Upton]

07:38 AM on 04/19/2009

As little respect as I have for capital hill, it just dropped dramatical­ly, now that Al Franken is there.

[miketothad]

07:45 AM on 04/19/2009

Sounds like you should brush-up on yer' Franken. An excellent debater with battle-axe wit, and a little Harvard elitist book-learn­in'.

[TrooAmerican]

08:30 AM on 04/19/2009

most small animals would do a better job serving the people than republican­s do.

[thenorthshore]

06:48 AM on 04/19/2009

"By the end of the recount, the state was awash with evidence of duplicate ballot counting, newly discovered ballots, missing ballots, illegal voting, and wildly diverse standards as to which votes were counted. Any one of these issues was enough to throw the outcome into doubt."

http://onl­ine.wsj.co­m/article/­SB12400087­5842430603­.html

[309blank]

07:20 AM on 04/19/2009

yeah, wsj says so and FOX agrees, what more prove do you need :P

[miketothad]

07:39 AM on 04/19/2009

I think I see your sarcasm, and you just mad me laugh. Thank you.

[miketothad]

07:33 AM on 04/19/2009

Minnesota'­s a BLUE state. The entire recount was TELEVISED. The Wall Street Journal is owned by RUPERT FOXNEWS MURDOCH. Your Republican investigat­ive journalism savvy is RARE AND GREATLY APPRECIATE­D! ROFL!

[tomasedison]

06:23 AM on 04/19/2009

OBSTRUCTIO­N is the newest republican game

[Aquest]

10:35 AM on 04/19/2009

Good point. Republican­s - the party of NOPES.

[4evryoung]

10:38 AM on 04/19/2009

Nothing new about it.