http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/mn-news/ en-us Mon, 6 Jul 2009 04:13:25 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2286286/posts Three Republicans on the House panel that oversees the Census Bureau have asked fellow GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota to end her plans to boycott next year’s count. Reps. Patrick McHenry of North Carolina, Lynn Westmoreland of Georgia and John Mica of Florida issued a statement saying every elected representative has a “responsibility” to encourage participation in the 2010 Census. “Boycotting the constitutionally mandated census is illogical, illegal and not in the best interest of our country,” they stated. . . . . . McHenry, Westmoreland and Mica – no fans of Acorn – pointed out an “unfortunate irony”... The Wall Street Journal - Washington Wire http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2286286/posts#comment Mon, 6 Jul 2009 04:13:25 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285576/posts Fireworks called Run Hadji Run were pulled off the shelves of a Wisconsin store after Minnesota Muslims complained that they were racist. The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) said that both the name and the packaging are demeaning. One side of the package has a drawing of Uncle Sam yanking the long beard of a man in traditional Muslim attire, while the other shows a Stealth bomber flying over a group of Arabs riding camels. In addition, "Hadji" is an honorific for those who have completed the pilgrimage to Mecca. Star-Tribune (Minnesota) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285576/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 19:37:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285415/posts Minnesota has been an unofficial testing ground for using ethanol to fuel vehicles, but after years of steady increases, interest appears to be waning. Despite a push from the governor and an increase in the number of so-called flexible-fuel vehicles on the road — which can run on either gasoline or a mostly ethanol blend — sales of E85 have dipped in recent months, beyond the normal decline in winter months. In February, sales of E85, a cleaner-burning fuel consisting of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline, hit their lowest mark since 2006, according to a new report by... Journalstar.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285415/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 14:19:38 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285365/posts A few reminders about fireworks, taken from the warning labels: 1. Do not hold in hand. This is apparently so nonintuitive it must be stamped on every item; you must wonder how stupid Chinese factory workers think we are: What else do we need to tell these idiots? Also, do not put in pants. Do not sleep with lit fireworks. Do not juggle. 2. Place on level surface. This one mystified us in North Dakota, a land so flat it made the gentle rolling hills of Iowa look like a brutal Himalayan range. Daddy, what does that mean? Well, it's... Minneapolis Star Tribune http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285365/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 12:05:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285262/posts The Wall Street Journal’s editors weigh in on Al Franken’s Senate win: The ‘Absentee’ Senator. The Minnesota Supreme Court yesterday declared Democrat Al Franken the winner of last year’s disputed Senate race, and Republican incumbent Norm Coleman’s gracious concession at least spares the state any further legal combat. The unfortunate lesson is that you don’t need to win the vote on Election Day as long as your lawyers are creative enough to have enough new or disqualified ballots counted after the fact. lgf http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285262/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 04:14:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284887/posts After all the votes were tallied Nov. 4, incumbent Republican Sen. Norm Coleman of Minnesota led socialist Democrat Al Franken by 725 votes. The mandatory recount reduced the margin to 215. And then the lawyers took over. They won rule changes in the middle of the game that allowed election officials to add previously disqualified votes to Mr. Franken's total and subtract valid votes from Sen. Coleman's. They unearthed thousands of heretofore missing absentee ballots, all from counties that had gone overwhelmingly for Mr. Franken, and suddenly their boy was up by 312. Then the lawyers got the courts to... Waterbury Republican-American http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284887/posts#comment Fri, 3 Jul 2009 15:43:49 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284690/posts SNIPPET: "A federal grand jury has indicted a group of Somali-Americans on terror-related charges after more than 20 young men from the Minneapolis area were recruited to join an Al Qaeda-linked group in Somalia, according to two law enforcement sources. The indictments have yet to be unsealed, but an announcement is expected in the next few weeks. One law enforcement source told FOX News the grand jury already has handed up indictments against at least three people. Among those charged is a man from Minneapolis who went to war-torn Somalia and then, about four months ago, relocated to Seattle, according... FOX NEWS.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284690/posts#comment Fri, 3 Jul 2009 08:16:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284514/posts Politics: The former Stuart Smalley becomes the 60th Democrat in the U.S. Senate, thanks to the community organizers at Acorn and the little-known Secretary of State Project. Is the system being rigged?Politics: The former Stuart Smalley becomes the 60th Democrat in the U.S. Senate, thanks to the community organizers at Acorn and the little-known Secretary of State Project. Is the system being rigged? Incumbent Republican Norm Coleman conceded defeat in the mother of all recounts in Minnesota's U.S. Senate race after the state's Supreme Court unanimously rejected his lawsuit. Arguably, his seat may have been lost the day in 2006... IBD Editorials http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284514/posts#comment Fri, 3 Jul 2009 00:26:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284486/posts Less than a week before Sen.-elect Al Franken (D-Minn.) is set to be sworn into office, a new national poll shows that 44 percent of voters have an unfavorable view of the former comedian and liberal radio host. A Rasmussen Reports poll released Thursday found that 34 percent have a favorable view of Franken, who defeated former Republican Sen. Norm Coleman to win the seat. Another 22 percent are not sure what they think of him. The poll revealed that Franken generates strong feelings among his detractors. Twenty-nine percent said they had a “very unfavorable” impression of Franken, compared with... politico.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284486/posts#comment Thu, 2 Jul 2009 23:46:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284330/posts If you need another reason to hate Harvard University, here's a good one: the elite politically correct school that has more money than God was the ninth-biggest donor to Senator-elect Al Franken's 2008 campaign, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Harvard gave $21,900 to the Franken campaign. American Spectator http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284330/posts#comment Thu, 2 Jul 2009 19:32:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284125/posts MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Al Franken was approved Tuesday to join the US Senate. The Democratic Party will now involve him in their secret plans. The Minnesota Supreme Court ratified Al Franken yesterday as having won the Senatorial election seven months ago. Incumbent Norm Coleman, having exhausted all legal channels except for the Minnesota Thunderdome, finally conceded the race, saying only, “Next time Franken. Next time.” The Democrats welcomed Franken into their upper echelons of power with a decoder ring and other perks. In a private ceremony involving robes and jasmine scented aromatherapy candles, Franken was sworn in as a Democrat... Weekly World News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2284125/posts#comment Thu, 2 Jul 2009 15:26:14 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283968/posts WASHINGTON -- The Minnesota Supreme Court has now ended months of vote fraud and other assorted acts of skullduggery to pronounce Al Franken winner of the state's 2008 senatorial race over Republican Norm Coleman. The process was unseemly, and it is conceivable that the court's justices merely acted out of civic pride. They did not want Minnesota's U.S. Senate races to attain the sort of notoriety attached to aldermanic elections in Chicago or presidential elections in Iran. Mr. Franken is an admitted clown. As such he will be the only admitted clown in the United States Senate, though he will... American Spectator http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283968/posts#comment Thu, 2 Jul 2009 11:35:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283729/posts Now that Al Franken is headed for the Senate, which Franken will show up in Washington? AP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283729/posts#comment Thu, 2 Jul 2009 00:44:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283721/posts A St. Louis Park man says he was taunted and pelted with rocks after he left the Twin Cities Gay Pride Parade, and the attack was caught on camera. The video has already received 1,800 views after it was posted Monday on YouTube. The clip shows boys and teenagers trailing 37-year-old Adam Schreifels and taunting him after learning he's gay. "We hate fags, disgusting. Just very inappropriate things to be saying," Schreifels said. He says while he was shocked by the comments, he wasn’t scared. "Some of them threw rocks. At first, I got defensive. Then I thought okay, they... KSTP News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283721/posts#comment Thu, 2 Jul 2009 00:34:12 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283695/posts How Cool Is Franken? by Eric Alterman Not only does Al Franken’s hard-fought victory give Democrats a magical 60 seats, it gives the Senate its first genuinely funny ex-comedian. Eric Alterman shares memories of his friend and former neighbor. Senator Franken? As long as it has taken, it’s still pretty hard to believe my friend and former neighbor is due to be sworn in early next week. He’ll be “Senator Franken” to the press and the lobbyists, and “my distinguished colleague” to the rest of that esteemed body. But as for the rest of us, I think we can safely... The Daily Beast http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283695/posts#comment Wed, 1 Jul 2009 23:46:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283445/posts Like an oasis in the desert, the 60-vote Democratic supermajority is a mirage. Yes, former comedian Al Franken is now Minnesota's senator-elect -- thanks to the state Supreme Court's ruling Tuesday -- giving Democrats enough members in the Senate to hit a filibuster-proof majority. This is no laughing matter. But that's on a really, really good day. For all intents and purposes, Democrats don't truly have 60 votes in the Senate. With the addition of Franken, they technically have 58. Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., caucus with Democrats but don't define themselves that way. Sanders, a socialist,... foxnews http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283445/posts#comment Wed, 1 Jul 2009 18:27:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283369/posts Democrat Al Franken, right, with his wife Frannie Franken smile as they meet the media at their house in MInneapolis Tuesday June 30, 2009 after the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Democrat in the Senate race against Republican Norm Coleman. (AP Photo/Andy King) Al Franken, the newest member of the U.S. Senate, will be the guest speaker at Sen. Tom Harkin's annual steak fry Sept. 13. Franken, who is expected to be seated in the Senate next week after winning recounts and court challenges in his upset of Minnesota Sen. Norm Coleman, will headline Harkin's 32nd... The Quad-City Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283369/posts#comment Wed, 1 Jul 2009 16:52:50 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283325/posts Not a whole lot to be happy about with this win by Franken but at least now they own everything. They have a filibuster proof Senate. Either everything they have whined about for the last eight years gets fixed or they are outright liars. Scott said it best in the comments: DEMS OWN IT NOW. What’s it? IT is EVERYTHING. 2010 midterms: if unemployment is still worse than when Obama took office, it’s their faultif GDP is still falling it’s Democrats’ faultif every American-EVERY SINGLE AMERICAN and most illegal aliens-don’t have the same high-quality/free medical coverage as Barack Obama…it’s their... Flopping Aces http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283325/posts#comment Wed, 1 Jul 2009 15:43:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283244/posts Just when you thought things couldn’t get more farcical in our nation’s capitol, the Al Franken Circus heads to town. Franken was declared the winner yesterday of the long-contested Senate race by the Minnesota Supreme Court with a razor-thin margin of 312 votes out of over 2.9 million votes cast. Norm Coleman chose to bow out of the race rather than continue the contest taking the fight to the federal courts. It is estimated the two camps have spent more than $1.7 million in legal fees through March, the end of the last FEC reporting period. Rumors abound that Coleman... HumanEvents.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283244/posts#comment Wed, 1 Jul 2009 14:07:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283017/posts Franken wins by changing the rules. The Minnesota Supreme Court yesterday declared Democrat Al Franken the winner of last year's disputed Senate race, and Republican incumbent Norm Coleman's gracious concession at least spares the state any further legal combat. The unfortunate lesson is that you don't need to win the vote on Election Day as long as your lawyers are creative enough to have enough new or disqualified ballots counted after the fact. ... Mr. Franken now goes to the Senate having effectively stolen an election. If the GOP hopes to avoid repeats, it should learn from Minnesota that modern... The Wall Street Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2283017/posts#comment Wed, 1 Jul 2009 04:01:14 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282952/posts Franken Declared Winner of Minnesota Senate Election, Giving Dems Filibuster-Proof Majority After the Minnesota high court rejects a legal challenge from Norm Coleman, the Republican concedes to Democrat Al Franken in the state's Senate race. Democrat Al Franken, right, with his wife Frannie Franken smile as they meet the media at their house in MInneapolis Tuesday June 30, 2009 after the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Democrat in the Senate race against Republican Norm Coleman. (AP) Democrat Al Franken as the winner of the state's vacant Senate seat after the state's high court ruled that Republican challenger... FoxNews.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282952/posts#comment Wed, 1 Jul 2009 01:57:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282881/posts Minnesota Court Confirms Razor-Thin Election Win, but Party's Filibuster-Proof Majority Is Vulnerable to Internal Fissures. WASHINGTON -- The Minnesota Supreme Court cleared the way for Democrat Al Franken to become Minnesota's new U.S. senator, ending a festering eight-month election dispute and giving the Democrats a 60-seat voting majority in the Senate. The court on Tuesday unanimously upheld Mr. Franken's margin of 312 votes out of 2.9 million cast in November's election, giving him the seat that had been held for one term by Republican Norm Coleman. Mr. Coleman conceded at a news conference at his home two hours later, saying... The Wall Street Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282881/posts#comment Wed, 1 Jul 2009 00:20:34 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282792/posts The National Republican Senatorial Committee spent nearly $1 million on Norm Coleman’s legal fees to back the Republican's appeals and draw out the Minnesota Senate race. But now that the state Supreme Court made its final ruling, NRSC Chairman John Cornyn said he "respects" Coleman's decision to concede: "Throughout the last several months, Senate Republicans have made clear that the people of Minnesota, not politicians in Washington, should decide this election. Now that the courts have spoken, I join Norm in respecting that decision and moving forward to address the important issues facing our country.... Politico http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282792/posts#comment Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:53:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282780/posts “I am deeply disappointed in the decision made by the state Supreme Court, and I share the frustration of Minnesota’s voters. At the core of our democracy lies two concrete principles: No valid vote should go uncounted and all votes should be treated equally. Sadly, those principles were not adhered to during this election. While I would have proudly stood behind Norm Coleman had he chosen to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, I know that his decision to withdraw from this race was not an easy one, but one that he felt was the best decision for the people... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282780/posts#comment Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:33:51 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282765/posts WASHINGTON (AP) - Senate Democrats are urging Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty to certify Democrat Al Franken's election to the Senate following the state Supreme Court's ruling that the former Saturday Night Live comedian defeated GOP incumbent Norm Coleman. Breitbart.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282765/posts#comment Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:03:03 GMT