Franken, Burris, and how?

(Yeah, I know. Somewhere there's a cache of another aborted attempt to do a reasonable blog-post on this subject, but interestingly enough, later was better than sooner for what I have to say.)


First, the pretty good news--I think Al Franken has this one:




Oh, I know Reid hasn't decided to put him in the old freshman class yet, and Norm Coleman wants to keep recounting until he starts winning again, but I'm just feeling good about Franken's numbers. I think, ahem, that further deliberation on the matter would be prejudicial against Mr. Franken's ability to act as Senator from the state of MN. Or something like that. So Coleman should get over it.

Also on the matter of Roland Burris:



There is a Constitutional point to be made in the assertion that the US Senate is the arbiter of electoral decision--but I think it would be as much over-reaching for Senate Dems to assert it in the case as I feel it was for SCOTUS to accept the Bush v. Gore case (how do like me now--a states' rights liberal!). The state of IL has a method for the appointment of US senators by the Governor, and Blagojevic is still the governor, taint or no taint. Now, he made this process as dumb-assed as possible by him and Rep. Rush pretty much using race as the high card, but the other card is, well, Burris is qualified. Continuing the conflict is playing a needless game of quien es mas macho? For the kind of paying attention--yeah, the guy has a really big mauseleum planned for himself. And he named his kids after himself, and yes, he donated some bucks to Blago's campaign.

Whev. There will be an election down the road. That's how it works.

And finally--who will replace Hilary Clinton as junior Senator from NY? Caroline Kennedy seems to have a paradoxical issue--as much to qualify her as to disqualify her, both columns being very short. We simply don't know how she'll do. Could be she's a natural, after the family tendencies, but on the other hand, she seems a little on the publicity-shy side. Andrew Cuomo? What about Harriet Christian--you know, the PUMA?

One of the people I'd have liked to see put her name in the running, but then, she's already endorsed Kennedy, is Rep. Louise Slaughter. She's sensible, experienced and I think she'd represent NY very well in the Senate, just as she has in the House.

Anyway, I like soap operas as much as the next gal, but there's serious business to be done, you know? So, I really look forward to them hashing it out, and starting on the stimulus, and all those other nifty things they need to do.