Minnesota's Coleman takes wait-and-see approach to Senate seat

ST. LOUIS -- Minnesota Republican Norm Coleman said Thursday he is awaiting the state Supreme Court's decision on his contested Senate seat before deciding what to do next.

In speaking to reporters after addressing the Conservative Heartland Leadership Conference in St. Louis, Coleman said he was focused on his Senate seat but hasn't dismissed other options.

"I'm still waiting to hear the court's decision," he said. "I'm focused on the Senate seat. I'm not looking past it. But I'm not ruling anything out."

Coleman was among a group of notable conservatives including Phyllis Schlafly, David Limbaugh and Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia's son, who gathered this week in St. Louis for a conference on conservative principles. About 200 people attended.

Coleman, who was elected mayor of St. Paul, Minn., as a conservative Democrat and switched parties in 1996, said the Republican brand has been hurt by failures in fiscal discipline and national security, though he said the U.S. won the war in Iraq.

Republicans are seen as "scolding and intolerant," Coleman said, but can recapture the country on the issues.

"It takes hard work," he said, recalling those who put their lives on hold in the run-up to the Iowa caucuses.

He asked if they cared enough about ending abortion, fighting terrorism and promoting the sanctity of marriage, private property and economic freedom to take six months out of their lives to fight for them.

"Whoever wants them the most will win," he said.

Coleman urged Republicans to expand their base among young people, urban dwellers and new immigrants and to organize "in the bluest of states and compete in purple and blue states for a common-sense majority."

He said most Americans agree with conservative ideals but like President Obama, illustrating a need to "find ways to more optimistically promote our vision."

He said Republicans must measure the results of Democrats' policies and point out the gaps. And he urged the party to get more comfortable with social-networking sites and other technological opportunities to build grassroots support.

Conference organizer and founder Ed Martin Jr., a St. Louis attorney, and board president of the underwriter, the conservative American Issues Project, said he invited Coleman because his career "has spanned big city executive and U.S. senator and everywhere in between." He said he also appreciated the challenges Coleman posed to the group.

The event was underwritten by the conservative American Issues Project, a not-for-profit group that aired political ads linking candidate Barack Obama to 1960s radical William Ayers.

Coleman's U.S. Senate term expired in January, but he is contesting the results that tipped the race to Democrat Al Franken by a few hundred votes.

Coleman appealed to the Minnesota Supreme Court, which heard arguments in the case Monday. A decision could come any time.

Coleman would not say Thursday whether he would appeal any unfavorable outcome to the U.S. Supreme Court, launch a new federal lawsuit, or even consider a run for governor in 2010. Coleman has said he wants to let the process play out.

This week, Minnesota's Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty announced he was not seeking a third term, and some have speculated that Coleman might be interested if he loses the Senate race.

He ran unsuccessfully for governor in 1998 when the state elected Jesse Ventura.

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On the Net:

Conservative Heartland Leadership Conference: https://www.conservativeheartland.org/

American Issues Project: http://www.americanissuesproject.org/