BREAKING NEWS: As Recount Winds Down…FBI Investigation Starts Up

by Jed L

Sat Dec 13, 2008 at 11:00:04 AM PST

We still don’t know who won the Minnesota Senate race, though yesterday’s canvassing board was a big boost for Al Franken’s prospects; a vivid recap of events as they stand now has been provided by WineRev.

We do know, however, that the FBI is beginning an investigation into the alleged payment of $75,000 to Norm Coleman. The New York Times covers them today in its recount writeup:

In another development late this week, law enforcement officials confirmed that the Federal Bureau of Investigation had begun a preliminary investigation into accusations contained in two recently filed civil lawsuits that a friend and former associate of Mr. Coleman tried to improperly funnel money to the Coleman family in 2007.

One official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of F.B.I. policies not to discuss investigations, said the inquiry was very informal, “just asking questions.”

The lawsuits, in Texas and Delaware, do not name Mr. Coleman as a defendant and do not claim that he ever received any money or benefits, or even that he was aware of any effort.

But with the recount still at fever pitch, the Coleman campaign nonetheless is punching back hard and saying that the accusations are part of a deliberate smear campaign.

“We are not aware of any investigation that is under way, nor have we been contacted by any agency with respect to this matter,” Mr. Coleman’s press secretary, Luke Friedrich, said in a written statement. “As we have said repeatedly, we welcome any investigation of these lawsuits by the appropriate authorities to get to the bottom of these baseless, sleazy and politically inspired allegations.”

In a new wrinkle reported this week by a local news station in Minneapolis, during the timeframe during which the payments are alleged to have taken place, Coleman’s home was undergoing an expensive renovation.

So that raises the question: if the allegations are true, is Norm Coleman the next Rod Blagojevich…or the next Ted Stevens?

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