Stuart Smalley Update

He found enough.  He stole enough.  And doggone it, he’s a senator:

Norm Coleman’s term as a U.S. senator ended at noon Washington time on Saturday, and by evening his hopes of winning a second term had been dealt an expected but serious setback as state officials counted previously rejected absentee ballots in St. Paul.

DFLer Al Franken held an unofficial lead of 225 votes over Coleman, according to a newspaper tally of the officials’ count of the absentee ballots. Franken had led unofficially by 49 votes going into the day and gained a net 176 votes from the new ballots.

With the recount complete, focus immediately shifted to the Minnesota Supreme Court, which continued to consider a request from the Coleman campaign to alter the process and add more absentee ballots to be reconsidered. But by early evening there was no word from the state’s highest court as to when it would rule or hear arguments.

At this point, any court challenge is purely perfunctory.  Coleman should show the honor Franken never would and concede.  And that’s ... OK.

With Franken and Caroline Kennedy in the Senate, late night comedians are not going to lack for stupid quotes.