Time uncritically repeated Coleman camp's "accus[ation]" that MN sec. of state has "breach[ed] neutrality"

In a November 17 article, Time's Justin Horwath uncritically repeated an "accus[ation]" by Sen. Norm Coleman's (R) campaign that Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie has " 'breach[ed] neutrality' by saying that the State Canvassing Board will probably consider taking up ... tossed absentee ballots" in advance of a forthcoming recount in the Minnesota Senate race between Coleman and Democratic challenger Al Franken. Franken, who, Horwath noted, like Ritchie, "belongs to the Democratic-Farmer-Labor coalition," filed a lawsuit in Ramsey County District Court "seeking to obtain the names of voters' whose absentee ballots were rejected" and "hopes to submit the ballots to the State Canvassing Board for consideration." But in reporting the Coleman campaign's accusation of partisanship by Ritchie, Horwath did not note that Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty approved of the composition of the board Ritchie named to certify the vote and oversee the recount or that a lawyer for Coleman's campaign reportedly said that the "state should feel good about who's on the panel," as Media Matters for America has documented.

Additionally, while Horwath noted that the board "includes two Minnesota Supreme Court Justices and two Ramsey County District Court judges," he did not point out that two of the board's five members -- Eric J. Magnuson and G. Barry Anderson -- were appointed to the Minnesota Supreme Court by Pawlenty.

From Horwath's November 17 Time article, "Coleman and Franken: Fighting Over the Minnesota Recount":

The recount, which will cost taxpayers roughly $87,000, promises to be arduous. The State Canvassing Board will certify elections results Tuesday and the recount begins Wednesday, when election officials in 110 locations across the state will analyze by hand each of the nearly 3 million ballots to determine voter's intent. (Minnesota uses optical scanners, and many voters haphazardly filled in the intended ovals, didn't do so at all or otherwise improperly marked their ballots.) Thousands of party representatives will literally be peering over their shoulders to challenge any apparent discrepancy. By law, election officials must place any challenged ballots in a separate pile for consideration by the State Canvassing Board. Secretary of State Mark Ritchie chairs the five-member board, which also includes two Minnesota Supreme Court Justices and two Ramsey County District Court judges.

On Saturday, the Coleman campaign accused Ritchie, who, like Franken, belongs to the Democratic-Farmer-Labor coalition, of "breaching neutrality" by saying that the State Canvassing Board will probably consider taking up the tossed absentee ballots. Ritchie has vowed to hold regular press conferences during the recount. "The whole world is watching to see if we're living up to our reputation as Minnesota -- our brand," Ritchie says. "Accuracy is the only measurement by which we can determine who won this election." Ritchie does not expect the recount to be completed until at least December 19. If the results are a tie, the contest could be decided by a coin toss.