Just shy of eight months after Election Day, the Minnesota Senate race between Al Franken and Norm Coleman has finally been decided. The state Supreme Court upheld Franken’s win today and Colemen conceded defeat. Gov. Tim Pawlenty was set to sign the certificate of election this afternoon and Franken will be heading to Washington next week.

Gov. Mark Sanford (R-S.C.) went AWOL for a week, forcing his staff to scramble to cover for him, and then had to admit that he was out of the country to see his mistress and had charged the trip to the taxpayers. The infidelity part of the story is irrelevant as they were consenting adults and it is disappointing to see outlets like TPM publish exerpts of private communications between the lovers.

If you’re considering a run for presidency, the campaign for which would start in less than two years, maybe it isn’t prudent to disappear for a number of days while leaving conflicting reports in your wake. Gov. Mark Sanford (R-S.C.) apparently didn’t get that memo.

Maybe I should’ve led with the fact that state Sen. Creigh Deeds won tonight’s Democratic Gubernatorial primary in Virginia with 49% of the vote. But the fact that Terry McAuliffe lost with 27% of the vote seemed like a much more entertaining headline.

Vermont has passed a law to allow same-sex marriages! The state legislature has voted 100-49 to overturn Gov. Jim Douglas’ veto. Vermont is following very closely in the footsteps of Iowa, who passed a similar law last week. Connecticut and Massachusetts were the first two states to do so. It is important to note, however, that the other states passed their laws because of judicial rulings while Vermont is the first state to proactively pass a marriage equality law.

Senate Republicans are blocking much needed economic legislation without offering any sound alternatives for the provisions they aren’t happy with. No, you haven’t fallen through a time warp. President Obama signed the stimulus bill into law yesterday and- Wayback machine notwithstanding-it is on its way to action. The Republicans in question are from the California state Senate, the economic legislation is a series of bills relating to the state’s $42 billion budget gap and the situation is getting more dire by the day.

A stroke of sheer, utter genius has caused wingnut chaos in the Tennessee State Assembly. Via Wonkette:
The assembly was prepared to elect some insane wingnut as House Speaker today to carry out this righteous agenda, until the Democrats, at the very last minute, all voted for a moderate Republican, and this moderate Republican voted for himself, and now he is House Speaker!
The Nashville Post has some excellent background, but the short version is that the Republicans held a 50-49 majority, and all 49 Democrats voted for Republican Kent Williams. Williams’ …

From the Chicago Tribune:
Outside the governor’s home on Chicago’s Northwest Side, Blagojevich promised a very public re-emergence soon.
“I can’t wait to begin to tell my side of the story and to address you guys and most importantly the people of Illinois, that’s who I’m dying to talk to,” Blagojevich said before heading out for a morning jog. “There’s a time and place for everything. That day will soon be here.”
I can’t wait either; my guess is that it’ll involve some O.J.-like hunt for the “real bribers” or something.
I know, I …

If it seems like just a few days ago that Rod Blagojevich believed there was “nothing but sunshine” over him, that’s because it was. But it would seem that the events of the intervening days have done nothing to blunt the soon-to-be-ex-Gov’s unswerving belief that not only is he fit to govern, but also that reality as we know it deserves to be ignored:
Still ducking questions three days after his arrest on sweeping corruption charges, the governor’s office issued a statement from Blagojevich this afternoon that only pertained to the …