It’s been confirmed that Senator Al Franken (D-MN) was, in fact, instructed to enforce a rule that limits speeches to ten minutes. That didn’t stop Bill O’Reilly from spreading misinformation about Franken’s denial of Sen. Joe Lieberman’s (I-CT) request to continue speaking past the 10 minute mark.

O’REILLY: Franken, who was in a rotation presiding over the Senate, objected to Lieberman continuing his remarks in a stunning display of disrespect.

[...]

O’REILLY: But many others did take it personally, including John McCain.

McCAIN [clip]: I’ve been around here 20-some years. First time I’ve ever seen a member denied an extra minute or two to finish his remarks.

It was claimed that Franken’s enforcement of the rule was “disrespectful” and “unprecedented.” He also allowed Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) to claim that Franken was “[a]bsolutely not” telling the truth in regards to the instructions that Franken was following.

O’REILLY: Is Franken telling the truth?

DeMINT: Absolutely not. I can’t believe he’s throwing Harry Reid under the bus.

However, both Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Lieberman himself have confirmed that Franken was following instructions.

Additionally, Senator John McCain, who claimed that it was “unprecedented” actually imposed a similar limit in the past.

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Fox News personalities Glenn Beck and Brian Kilmeade (Fox & Friends) seem to be extremely upset that Al Franken is now a Senator… Of course, Fox News did sue Franken (and lost) about using the term “fair and balanced” in the title of his book… This is just childish ranting:

GLENN BECK: This is like having me in the Senate,” Beck said. “You don’t want me as a Senator! What is that? I mean, it shows how crazy our country has gone — you don’t want me as a Senator, you don’t want Al Franken as a Senator.

BRIAN KILMEADE: Now we find out that Al Franken — who’s barely sane if you read his books, and is quite angry in every facet of his life — is now the Senator from Minnesota

Even the Rupert Murdoch owned Wall Street Journal gets in on the rhetoric:

WALL STREET JOURNAL: Mr. Franken now goes to the Senate having effectively stolen an election… If the GOP hopes to avoid repeats, it should learn from Minnesota that modern elections don’t end when voters cast their ballots. They only end after the lawyers count them.

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