After yesterday's rally celebrating the end of the 2008 elections and welcoming Minnesota's second Senator, Al Franken, Denise Cardinal, ABM's Executive Director, shared the following note:
Yesterday, a huge crowd of Minnesotans came out and joined Keith Ellison, Betty McCollum, and Amy Klobuchar to finally welcome Minnesota's second Senator to the job.
In case you couldn't make it, here are a couple of photos:
Now that the wait for our second Senator is over, the real work begins. During Senator Franken's speech, he called on Minnesotans to keep organizing and to keep holding their elected officials accountable.
Well, Alliance for a Better Minnesota plans on doing just that.
Over the next few years, we are going to face many challenges -- including restoring the economy to make it work for middle-class families again, reforming our broken health care system, and solving the climate crisis.
We expect all of our elected officials, including Senator Franken, to fight for working families and not the special interests; to fight quality, affordable health care for every American; to fight for good-paying green jobs that can't be shipped overseas; and to fight for an education system that truly leaves no child behind.
It won't be easy, but with your continued support, we can rebuild the middle class and create a better Minnesota for working families.
Thank you,
Denise Cardinal Executive Director Alliance for a Better Minnesota
President Barack Obama's nomination of Second District Appeals Court Judge, Sonia Sotomayor, has some wondering, as a question of legal process, who wil be successfully seated first: Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor -- or Sen. Al Franken (D-MN).
The great majority of Minnesotans want Al Franken seated immediately if the Minnesota Supreme Court rules in his favor, but University of Minnesota professor Larry Jacobs thinks its possible that Pawlenty may try to use a decision against Coleman as part of his campaign for President.
We can't let that happen.
Go here to sign the petition telling Tim Pawlenty to put Minnesota ahead of his national political ambitions and fulfill his legal duties by signing Al Franken's election certificate.
Will Pawlenty act in the best interests of the people of Minnesota that urgently need full representation in the U.S. Senate -- or his own national political ambitions?
On the heels of our recent poll which found that nearly six in 10 (59%) of Minnesotans believe that Norm Coleman should concede to Al Franken, Alliance for a Better Minnesota joined Americans United for Change and the MN-AFL-CIO yesterday to unveil a new television ad urging Governor Tim Pawlenty to do his legal duty and certify the U.S. Senate election results should Al Franken be declared the winner by the Minnesota Supreme Court.
"The results from the poll are clear, an overwhelming majority of Minnesotans want Tim Pawlenty to fulfill his legal obligations and sign the election certificate for Al Franken, should the MN Supreme uphold every other decision, and stop trying to score points with national Republican leaders," said ABM's Deputy Director Joe Davis.
The ad spotlights the national Republican Party's dogged efforts to stand in the way of Minnesota's urgently needed and rightful representation in the U.S. Senate and asks Governor Pawlenty if he will act in the best interests of the people of Minnesota – or his own national political ambitions.
Donald McFarland, Americans United Minnesota State Director, said that Minnesota cannot afford to be without full representation in Congress for a day long, particularly during these extraordinarily difficult economic times that are each day leaving more Minnesotans without jobs, homes and health care.
The ad will air on cable television in the Twin Cities and Rochester media markets starting today through next week.
The ABM/Grove Insights poll also found that 64 percent of Minnesotans would have “serious doubts” about Tim Pawlenty if he were to refuse to sign a certificate of election -- as he is legally required -- if the Minnesota Supreme Court declares Al Franken the winner in the U.S. Senate.
On his morning show, Morning Joe, former GOP Congressman Joe Scarborough joined chorus of Republicans telling Norm Coleman "it's over."
SCARBOROUGH: Okay, I don't mean to keep interrupting your news, but when are the Republicans going to give up the ghost on this?
Seriously? Norm, I like you. You lost. Okay? Can we seat a senator so Amy doesn't have to do the job of two senators? It's not fair--it's seriously not fair to constituents in Minnesota to drag this out any longer. It's over, Norm. Okay? It's over... But seriously! Enough!
Norm, you lost. It's over. Quit.
Joe's told Norm to give it up--now it's your turn!
You can use our letter writing tool to ask former Senator Norm Coleman to stop standing in the way of the change Minnesotans voted for last November.
With CQ Politics calling a Coleman victory "mathematically impossible," Norm may decide to turn to his friends in the conservative movement for a morale booster.
True, National Republicans are still talking about a "World War III" scenario and another Bush vs. Gore, but The National Review is coming out strong, calling this "the last moment where he can exit with some dignity."
If he keeps up the fight, he is likely to lose, unnecessarily deprive Minnesota of a second senator, end his political career seen as a sore loser, and hurt his party in a state that is eager for this fight to be over. His team has talked enough about further legal challenges that if he leaves now, he will get some points for grace. (Needless to say, that sentiment would not be universal.) But this is, I think, the last moment where he can exit with some dignity.
This comes on the heels of an editorial in the Albert Lea Tribune, a paper which endorsed Coleman during the election, calling on him to concede.
Now that conservatives (and the Albert Lea Tribune) have had their say, it's your turn!
You can use our letter writing tool to ask former Senator Norm Coleman to stop standing in the way of the change Minnesotans voted for last November.
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