Over six months and millions of dollars later Al Franken has finally been declared the winner over Norm Coleman by the Minnesota Supreme Court. Minnesota’s second Senate seat has remained open since last year’s bitterly contested election. Watch:

It is unclear if Coleman will appeal to federal court.

Same sex-couples from neighboring states are making the trek to Iowa to take advantage of state’s recent ruling allowing gay marriage. Seventeen couples from St. Louis traveled 250 miles by bus to Iowa City and were married Friday one-by-one in a 90 minutes ceremony. “It feels great,” said 58-year-old Mike Fienup, who married his partner of 15 years, Gerry Humphreys. “We’re citizens. We pay taxes. Why can’t we be treated equal?”

On Sunday, ten gay couples arrived by bus from Davenport, Minnesota to exchange their vows. “If I have to go to Iowa first because that’s the first opportunity I have, then I am going to take it,” said Johnny Hedgepeth, one of the men getting married. “I say where ever you are married, you are married and the law will just have to catch up with reality.” The beginning of their journey is documented in the video below:

While the marriages performed will be officially recognized in the state of Iowa, they will not be considered valid in their home states. Currently there are no official counts on the number of same-sex weddings thus far, on the surface it appears that out-of-staters make up only a small percentage. Hardly sounds like gay marriage mecca to me…

I’d like to start by apologizing to the fine people of Minnesota… but really how could you send this woman to Washington?

First up, Michelle Bachmann, congresswoman from Minnesota, about 50 seconds in.

And now Barney Frank, congressman from Massachusetts

[youtube width=”320″ height=”265″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAzReB_KTeA[/youtube]

I’m sorry. It’s no contest. Not even close.

No one saw this coming, especially the Republicans. From the Washington Post:

Specter’s decision would give Democrats a 60 seat filibuster proof majority in the Senate assuming Democrat Al Franken is eventually sworn in as the next senator from Minnesota. (Former senator Norm Coleman is appealing Franken’s victory in the state Supreme Court.)

“I have decided to run for re-election in 2010 in the Democratic primary,” said Specter in a statement. “I am ready, willing and anxious to take on all comers and have my candidacy for re-election determined in a general election.”

He added: “Since my election in 1980, as part of the Reagan Big Tent, the Republican Party has moved far to the right. Last year, more than 200,000 Republicans in Pennsylvania changed their registration to become Democrats. I now find my political philosophy more in line with Democrats than Republicans.”

Senate Republicans have since called an emergency meeting, as their ability to block Democratic legislation is now razor thin. RNC head Michael Steele and Senator Olympia Snow of Maine provided contrasting viewpoints in the NY Times.

[Spectre] didn’t leave the G.O.P. based on principles of any kind. He left to further his personal political interests because he knew that he was going to lose a Republican primary due to his left-wing voting record. Republicans look forward to beating Senator Specter in 2010, assuming the Democrats don’t do it first.”

But Senator Olympia Snowe of Maine, who also supported the Obama administration’s economic stimulus legislation, said Mr. Specter’s decision reflected the increasingly inhospitable climate in the Republican party for moderates.

“On the national level of the Republican Party, we haven’t certainly heard warm, encouraging words about how they view moderates, either you are with us or against us,” Ms. Snowe said. She said national Republican leaders were not grasping that “political diversity makes a party stronger and ultimately we are heading to having the smallest political tent in history for any political party the way things are unfolding.”

Welcome to the party Arlen. Now come on Al, you’re holding up the majority. 🙂