The Long Minnesota Nightmare Is Over

The Norm Coleman-Al Franken vote count marathon is one of the weirder stories in contemporary American political history.

An incumbent Republican becomes so unpopular that Minnesotans vote to replace him with a stand-up comic who wins by a small handful of votes that grow larger and larger with every recount challenge that the incumbent mounts.

Finally, eight months -- eight months -- later it appears that the comic finally will be seated, giving the Democrats that mythic 60th seat.