Breaking News: Al Franken, Senator
port1080.
Posted to Politics on Wed Jul 01, 2009 at 02:03:42 PM EST (promoted by wetkarma). RSS.
After a long, drawn out court battle, Minnesota's state supreme court has denied Norm Coleman's challenges to last November's vote totals. Shortly thereafter, Coleman conceded and Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty agreed to certify the results.
In addition to wrapping up the last undecided race of the 2008 federal elections, this decision gives Senate Democrats a theoretically filibuster-proof three-fifths majority (counting the two independent Senators that caucus with the Democrats). Longterm fiscally conservative "Blue Dog" Democrats such as Bill Nelson, as well as pathetically desperate turncoat new Democratic moderate Arlen Specter may occasionally throw some monkey wrenches into the legislative process, but overall it just became much easier for Democrats to pass legislation, confirm appointments, and otherwise proceed with their legislative agenda.
Barring any further changes in the makeup of the Senate, for at least the next year and a half the government will be operating in almost undprecendented territory. The last time one party controlled the House and Presidency, and had a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate was during the Carter administration, and the last time there was such cohesiveness in the majority party was probably during FDR's second term. Of course, this doesn't necessarily bode well for Obama - Carter is hardly remembered fondly, and in that period from '37 to '39, when he had the strongest control of Congress he ever would, FDR committed perhaps his greatest overreach and attempted to pack the Supreme Court, an act that fractured his party and hamstrung his legislative efforts thereafter.
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