Al Franken, with his wife Franni at his side, announced that he would go to work for the people of Minnesota, upon his being seated in the U.S. Senate next week. (Photo: Mordecai Specktor)

Al Franken, Minnesota’s new U.S. senator after a recount saga and legal wrangle that stretched out for nearly eight months, stepped out [...]

The Minnesota Supreme Court ruled for Al Franken today, in the long-running Minnesota Senate race. Franken is shown with his wife, Franni, at a Jan. 11 rally in support of Israel at the Sabes JCC in St. Louis Park. (Photo: Mordecai Specktor)

Nearly eight months after the 2008 elections, the Minnesota Supreme Court issued a ruling [...]

In a New York City courtroom today, U.S. District Judge Denny Chin sentenced Wall Street insider Bernard Madoff to 150 years in prison, following his March 12 guilty plea for a Ponzi scheme that may have raked in $65 billion over more than two decades, according to Bloomberg.com.
The financial news service reported:
“I don’t ask for [...]

Politico, MinnPost and the Star Tribune, among other outlets, reported today that the Federal Election Commission ruled that former Sen. Norm Coleman can use campaign funds to defend himself against allegations that Nasser Kazeminy, a longtime friend and political supporter, steered some $75,000 to him through a company that employed Coleman’s wife.
Coleman is not named [...]

Guitar ace Tim Sparks, who tours the world from his home base of Frazee, Minn., has cut a new album. Backed by stellar bassist Greg Cohen and in-demand percussionist Cyro Baptista, Sparks has adapted 10 tunes composed by the self-proclaimed “King of the Klezmer Clarinet” on Little Princess: Tim Sparks Plays Naftule Brandwein (Tzadik). The [...]

As the Guthrie Theater’s unprecedented celebration of his work comes to a close, the playwright talks with the American Jewish World
By MORDECAI SPECKTOR
Renowned playwright Tony Kushner returned briefly to Minneapolis last weekend. He wanted to see another performance of Caroline, or Change, before the end of its run at the Guthrie Theater (5-1-09 AJW). Kushner wrote [...]

By MORDECAI SPECKTOR

Samuel L. Kaplan, a prominent Minneapolis lawyer and influential DFL Party activist, has been nominated as U.S. ambassador to Morocco by President Barack Obama. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Kaplan, 72, will become one of the few American Jews to serve as envoys to Arab nations.

Sam Kaplan (Photo Courtesy of College [...]

People around the world have been riveted by news reports about the ongoing protests in Iran, and the brutal repression being meted out by the reactionary clerical regime. An unusual feature of the crisis in Iran is the role played by social networking Web sites — especially Twitter — which brings real-time accounts of unfolding [...]

In the aftermath of the fatal shooting at the Holocaust Museum in Washington, local shuls and agencies reassess threats to safety

By STEVEN ROSENBAUM

The recent shootings at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., and the thwarted attempt to bomb synagogues in the Bronx, N.Y., have left many thinking about the security of [...]

Children often ask, “Is G-d an old man with a white beard who lives in the sky?” What should a parent say to a three- or four-year-old who asks this question? How do we convey the truth of G-d’s existence in a way a child can understand?