Smearing Sen. Franken

[a kennedy]

By David Weigel

This is some extremely shoddy journalism from Mickey Kaus. The Slate blogger asks if “ACORN chicanery” elected Sen. Al Franken, who won a razor-thin 2008 race for the U.S. Senate after eight months of legal challenges. Kaus links a “tactfully phrased Minneapolis Star Tribune story” to argue that fraudulent votes might have stolen the election for Franken.

ACORN claimed to have registered 48,000 new Minnesota voters. If just 1% were ineligible but cast ballots, or had ballots cast for them illegally, and survived the recount process … that’s 480 votes, almost certainly overwhelmingly cast for Franken.

Let’s look at this.

First, the story Kaus links to is actually a column by the conservative Katherine Kersten, whom the paper refers to as “a Twin Cities writer and speaker,” and who limns the column with attacks on the “liberal agenda.” Kersten has no proof that any illegitimate votes were cast, only that “Minnesota’s laws on proof of voter eligibility are notoriously loose.”

Second, “surviving the recount process” in Minnesota was more difficult than it sounds now. Ballots were counted once and recounted twice, and challenged ballots were counted in a hearing that was streamed live. Republicans had a lot of time, and a lot of incentive, to make the cause that thousands of ballots were illegitimate. They made their case. They narrowly lost.

full article: http://minnesotaindependent.com/45965/smearing-sen-franken

[annabanana]

1. sore loserism. . nothing more. . . .n/t

[thunder rising]

2. Who is Mickey Kaus and why should I give a shit about what he says?

Is there really a newspaper Minnesotain Dependent?

[KharmaTrain]

3. Saw This One Coming...These People Are So Predictable...

The GOOP can't win elections so the only thing they can try to do is try to make those who were elected appear illegitimate.

Kudos to Rachel Maddow for being the rare voice on the corporate media to blow through the ACORN bullshit and shame on the rest of the lazy corporate media for allowing the lie and smears to percolate and now spill over into other memes...all lies based on lies.

This is a classic case of "trial by media" where spin got far ahead of the facts.

The rushpublicans big hopes are to put clouds over this Administration and their pet targets (Franken being at the top of the list) to make them appear weak and/or corrupt and also to whip up donations.

The GOOP has succeded in making ACORN into a perjorative and will try to stick it on any and every Democrat they can.

[Ian David]

4. Norm Coleman should sue Franken! Franken could use the money (again). n/t

[Vinca]

5. Somehow they forget that during the last election the only people

found guilty of voter fraud were Republicans.

[HelenWheels]

6. Boo hoo

Franken won and he's been seated in the Senate. Give it up.