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Here are a few fast facts on the fabulous folks fulfilling the functions on on our fine State Supreme Court:
- Chief Justice Eric J. Magnuson (the guy with the goatee in the front row) was appointed to the court last year by his former friend and law partner, Governor Tim Pawlenty. He’s recused himself from the recount and contest cases, as he sat on the State Canvassing Board. But even if he didn’t recuse himself, that’s not to say that he’d automatically do Norm Coleman’s or Tim Pawlenty’s bidding, as he and Smilin’ Tim have clashed recently over budget cuts to the state courts system.
- Justice Alan C. Page (the guy with the blue bowtie sitting at Magnuson’s right) has made his mark in both law and sports, being a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame (he played for the Vikings). Since Magnuson and G. Barry Anderson have recused themselves, he’s been the one signing the Court’s orders, such as this one granting the pro hac vice petition from Franken lawyers. Marc Elias and Kevin Hamilton. Hewas elected to an open seat on the court in 1992, and is the first African-American to serve on it.
- Justice Paul H. Anderson is the fella on Magnuson’s left. He’s been on the court since 1994 — only Page has been on it longer — and he is best known for his opinion in State v. Brooks. He came to the court via an appointment from Arne Carlson, a moderate Republican who was our governor at the time and who is almost universally despised by the rabid wolves currently running the Republican Party of Minnesota. (How moderate is he? This much: Carlson actually endorsed Obama last fall.)
- Justice Helen M. Meyer is the taller of the two female justices in the back row. She was appointed to the court in 2002 by then-governor Jesse Ventura; before that, she worked as a civil trial lawyer and mediator for over twenty years and served on the Judicial Merit Selection Commission, which made recommendations on state judicial appointments.
- Justice G. Barry Anderson is the tall person next to Justice Meyer. He, like Chief Justice Magnuson, a Pawlenty appointment, having been appointed in 2004; and like Chief Justice Magnuson, he has recused himself from the recount contest trial appeal, as he was also on the State Canvassing Board that oversaw the recount.
- Justice Lorie Skjerven Gildea is standing on Justice Meyer’s right. She was appointed by Pawlenty in 2006 and won election to her seat in 2008. As her name indicates, she is of Norwegian descent; she comes from Minnesota’s rural northwestern part, though she also knows the big city: She got her law degree at Georgetown and then stayed in the DC area for over a decade in private practice before returning to Minnesota to be associate general counsel for the University of Minnesota.
- Justice Christopher J. Dietzen is yet another Pawlenty pick, made in 2008, and quite possibly the most partisan one of the lot. He’s the one in the back row who’s wearing the red tie. Not only does he owe his Supreme Court seat to Smilin’ Tim, but he owes his previous gig on the Minnesota Court of Appeals to Pawlenty as well. He’s currently in the news for his campaign donations to Norm Coleman, acts that have triggered calls for him to recuse himself from the recount contest appeal.
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has he responded?
He probably won’t, if for no other reason than with three judges recused, the court is perilously close to not having a quorum.
Any info expected this week on the motions and responses in the appeal? Can we hope to get some actual movement on this, or can we expect to see more dallying and delaying? I know thatthe MNSC has moved quickly on the issues in this case so far. Can we realistically expect more of the same?
Yes, the MN Supreme Court is taking their sweet time. I’m worried that they’ll take six or more weeks, like they did with Franken’s request for a certificate.
That raises an excellent question, PW. What happens if the Court doesn’t have a quorum? Does the appeal die, for lack of judges with the capacity to, well … judge this case?
rut ro
an excuse to take the matter to a higher court without deciding
if you are right AND if they are as diabolical as I am, he will recuse himself so as to NOT have that quarum
And *bam* they strike again, June 1st for oral arguments. Unbelievable.
I’m disappointed, but not surprised.
There wasn’t that much difference between the Franken and Coleman schedules. One way to read almost every decision that’s come down in this case is that Norm is being given every chance to make his case. He makes his case, and the decision comes back against him. That reduces the grounds for appeal. When his lawyers go whine to Strip-search Sammy, their petition for a temporary restraining order is going read something like this: “Norm lost the election. He’s not happy about that. He appealed it. The Courts ruled that he lost the election. He’s not happy about that, either. So please, pretty please, tell Governor Pawlenty’o’nuttin’ not to sign that election certificate.” Strip-search isn’t going to have anything to hang his hat on.
Remember that by any ordinary judicial standard this case is flying. We’re frustrated because Norm’s merely delaying the inevitable, his candidacy is on life-support but he won’t pull the plug on it.
Another way to view this is that the Court is continuing to hand Coleman rope, and he’s busy fashioning it into a noose he’s placing around his neck. When the trap door opens, he’s dead.
Oh yeah, Coleman’s done. He’ll never hold office in Minnesota again. I just hope this ridiculous delay now completely damages all other GOP candidates in the state. And legislators sure as hell better be fixing our election law so a candidate gets seated before legal challenges. This is beyond lunacy.
Note that the oral arguments for BOTH sides are alloted one day, June 1. So that, at least, has been sped up.
Yes, indeed — though it’s not so much that the law was flawed from the start, as that it was created in a time when Minnesota Republicans, at least, weren’t total douchebags.* Elmer Andersen conceded in March rather than contest the recount.
*The same couldn’t be said of those GOPers with Presidential aspirations: Contrary to Republican myth, Nixon challenged the 1960 election in court for months even though he knew it was a lost cause.
Actually, I must correct myself. It’s not one day. It’s one HOUR of one day. In other words, the MNSC is saying that they really don’t think oral arguments are necessary, but they want to make sure that Strip-Search Sammy doesn’t have ANY sort of pretext for issuing a stay, as BC’s mentioned.
I am (as my son says) a sad cat.
After all the dawdling and folderol of the actual ECC trial, one would think that a quick review of the records would suffice. I guess the MNSC has to allot adequate time to go through the entire record, though.
I wonder if Team Normie (TN) will cause a ruckus about the 1 hour oral argument time, or if he thinks that at that point it won’t make much difference.
From what I have seen, the usual role of the SC is to make certain that the legal niceties were followed and that no constitutional issues have been ignored or mis-ajudicated. It looks to me like the MNSC plans to make a thorough review of the records and then give each side a chance to highlight any issues they claim affect the case that aren’t given due consideration in the case to date.
Considering the care that has gone into this case so far, I can’t believe there’s much for TN to squeal about (but I’m sure they’ll either find something or make some shit up).