With a final 225-vote Canvassing Board lead, Al Franken prematurely declared victory Monday, even though Minnesota law says he hasn't won anything yet. The PiPress' Rachel Stassen-Berger and Dave Orrick write that Senate Dems reneged on their promise to try to seat Franken during today's congressional swearings-in. The Strib staff says Coleman officials promise to file a lawsuit today, which stops the certification clock; Norm will also make a public statement. The Senate closed his local offices, by the way.

Editorialists on Al: The PiPress gently scolds Franken for his victory statement, and says he should respect the court process to come. Though I think Norm's legal contentions are weak, I agree with a Strib editorial that says he's justified in going to court. The Canvassing Board said repeatedly they could not conduct evidentiary hearings; a court should weigh in, especially on consistent absentee counting standards (which admittedly, the state Supremes whiffed on the first time).

Next step: Should Coleman file, Minnesota Chief Justice Eric Magnuson, a Republican appointee, takes the driver's seat from DFL Secretary of State Mark Ritchie. By law, Magnuson appoints a three-judge Ramsey County court panel. The PiPress says it's unclear if Magnuson will recuse himself because he also served on the Canvassing Board; who would get appointment power if he does? By the way, KSTP's Chris O'Connell says taxpayers are out $200,000 for the recount; no estimate of public court costs.

Carl Pohlad died at 93, unleashing a torrent of newspaper copy. The Strib has no fewer than six pieces, five of which would've evaporated had Pohlad not bought the Twins. Pat Reusse, who broke the story, offers some great anecdotes about Tom Kelly's and Andy MacPhail's hiring; loyalty is the theme of Sid Hartman's and Charley Walters' eulogies. But as a fan who never forgave Pohlad for offering up the team for contraction, I appreciate Tom Powers' astringent PiPress obit.

More Pohlad: Still, the man was controversial enough that the Strib is moderating website comments to his obit, written by the Strib's Neal St. Anthony, who presents a balanced look at Pohlad's hardnosed business career, including his astoundingly astute banking deals and the shareholder suits non-banking deals attracted. A Strib editorial downplays the bad stuff. WCCO's Don Shelby remembers Pohlad as a war hero.  

Final Pohlad: The Strib's LaVelle E. Neal says Pohlad's three sons will make big Twins decisions as a triumvirate; the eldest, Jim, is the club's CEO.

Almost like a movie, a bizarre shakedown-cum-kidnap-threat culminated in an IDS Center confrontation, Fox9 reports. After a Minnetonka man had $200,000 burglarized from his safe, the shakedown artists called, talked of a kidnap plot, and asked to be paid 15 grand for info. The exchange happened in an IDS skyway, where two men were arrested. One of the suspects is married to the victim's ex-wife. KSTP says the victim's family "is a well-known Minnesotan jeweler."

The upshot of higher gas prices and less driving? The Hutchinson Leader's Matt McMillen says preliminary data show Minnesota's 2008 traffic fatalities the lowest since 1944. The current number, 424, is the lowest since the 356 mark 64 years ago. McMillen says the number will rise a bit as final data trickle in until May; the Strib's Jim Foti predicts 430. That would represent a 15 percent drop over 2007. Our death rate was already lowest in the nation.

Despite fears that cheap gas prices will move consumers back to larger trucks and away from St. Paul's Ford Ranger, the PiPress' Gita Sitaramiah says Ranger sales dropped less than the bigger models in December. After a one-month layoff, local Ford workers return Jan. 12.

The Legislature convenes today, and Finance and Commerce's Betty Sundquist looks at non-budget issues on the table. I think you could lift the state's spirits if liquor could be sold on Sundays; one store owner is making a push. We're all too blue for outdated blue laws! And while we're at it, let grocers sell wine and beer; another group will push for that.

How the hell can they have trouble finding Census workers in this economy? AP says there's a shortage in Duluth; office work pays $9 to $13 an hour, while field work gets you up to $14.50.

If you're trying to get one of those $40 coupons for a digital TV converter box, you waited too long, says the PiPress' Julio Ojeda-Zapata. The federal program is out of cash, though Sen. Amy Klobuchar is pushing for more consumer-subsidy money. The switchover from analog happens Feb. 17.

Sixty-six-year-old Carl Eller still has it; the ex-Viking allegedly picked up Minneapolis cop Gil Antaya, "threw him against the garage a couple of times, and punched him in the face, knocking him out," writes the Strib's Rochelle Olson. The "wince-inducing account" came during Eller's pre-trial hearing for fourth-degree assault and terroristic threats stemming from an April DUI arrest.