It only took the Minnesota Supreme Court seven and three-quarter months to hear the arguments, evaluate the data and decide that Al Franken should be certified as the winner of that state’s ridiculously prolonged Senate race. May the scumbag Republicans who goaded Norm Coleman, Franken’s vanquished Senate race opponent, into contesting this thing well past the point of rational dispute suffer some form of payback.

The N.Y. Times is reporting that Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty, whom I suspect has been a secret go-along scumbag in this affair, “had indicated as late as Monday that he was willing to certify Mr. Franken as the winner once the state’s highest court decided the recount and Mr. Coleman’s battle. On CNN on Sunday, Mr. Pawlenty said: ‘I’m prepared to sign it as soon as they give the green light.'”

Coleman should have done the gentlemanly thing and bailed on this thing months ago. I wouldn’t put it past the Republican hardhead machine to keep pushing because they’re animals and incapable of showing shame. Franken however, does finally seem poised to become the 60th Democratic Senator.