Franken tells Dems he's running for Senate

[MonkeyFunk]

WASHINGTON - Comedian and radio talk show host Al Franken has begun calling Democratic members of Congress and prominent DFLers to tell them he will definitely challenge Republican Sen. Norm Coleman in 2008, the Star Tribune has learned.


On Monday, Franken announced that he was quitting his radio show on Feb. 14, and he told his audience that they'd be the first to know of his decision. But Franken has been working the phones in recent days, telling his political friends he's ready to declare his candidacy.




http://www.startribune.com/587/story/972540.html

[sniffa]

1. awesome!

good bye norm! :bounce:

[Tempest]

2. He'll easily win

He's very popular in his MN district.

[Stu DeBeouf]

10. What district is that?

n/t

[me b zola]

34. LOL, OT

I can pick out the village idiot in your pic :rofl:

[scarletwoman]

13. What the hell are you talking about? A Senator represents the entire state.

As a Minnesotan, I fervently hope that some other good DFLer will run against Coleman. As far as I'm concerned, Franken is a New York carpetbagger. (Just like Coleman, oddly enough.)

No true MN DFLer that I know wants Franken to run for that seat.

sw

[LSK]

17. a carpetbagger who grew up there?????

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Franken

[scarletwoman]

22. Oh give me a break! I KNOW he "grew up" in Minnesota -- I don't need a farking wikipedia article!

Just because I'm a Minnesotan doesn't mean I'm an ignorant idiot.

I'm telling you, as a Minnesotan, I DON'T want Franken to be MY Senate candidate.

sw

[mzmolly]

52. YOU don't want Franken, but we do live in a Democracy, and many people *I* know

like Al Franken. I am also, a Minnesotan.

[Stu DeBeouf]

18. AMEN!

:thumbsup:

[mzmolly]

54. I'm a TRUE Minnesota DFL'er, so consider yourself corrected.

Franken has also appeared at events to raise funds for the DFL.

[dflprincess]

65. Thank you SW.

I was beginning to think I was the only one whose toes weren't tingling over this.

I like Franken, but I don't see him doing well outside of the metro area. I would love to see Ford Bell try again. While he's not as outgoing, I thought his positions were far closer to Wellstone's than Klobuchar's are and, he didn't pull any punches about things like Iraq or single payer healthcare.

Unless the DSCC has put the fix in, I would expect a lot of people to run for this seat.

[LSK]

15. not State Senate, US Senate

[aquart]

3. Go Al!

[WI_DEM]

4. Would he be the strongest candidate we could put up against Coleman?

[MonkeyFunk]

6. Very likely

Coleman never would've won in the first place if not for Wellstone's death. Franken seems to have been doing everything right to run a strong campaign.

Plus, can you imagine the debates?

[WI_DEM]

12. yeah, I still can't believe Coleman won in '02 even against Mondale

Mondale had won every election he ever ran in Minnesota except that one in '02.

[mzmolly]

64. He won because people claimed Democrats politicized the Wellstone funeral.

:(

[dflprincess]

67. The fact that a lot of absentee voters didn't have time to recast their ballots

had a lot to do with that. Absentee Wellstone ballots weren't counted on the grounds that it could not be assumed that a vote for Wellstone meant that the voter would have picked Mondale over Coleman. What I didn't understand was why it could be assumed that an absentee vote for Coleman meant that the voter would still have voted for Coleman even if they had known that Mondale would be running.

[tridim]

20. The debates will be must see TV! The commercials will be good too.

Al will fit into the new Senate much better than he did on the radio.

I can't wait until he has to deal with lobbyists and other unsavory characters in DC. He'll make a big ol' public stink about it. :)

[terrya]

33. I think had there been a few more weeks, Mondale might have won....

in 2002.

I think there is some very serious buyers remorse for the voters of Minnesota. Franken will make a superb candidate.

And the debates will be something to see.

[mzmolly]

60. We'll see how people respond to him. He's taking it very seriously and reaching

out to the right people for advice.

[applegrove]

5. What a great public man he is. Puts his person where it is needed most.

[Deep13]

7. He's good enough, strong enough, and doggonnit, people like him.

[MonkeyFunk]

11. I hope to God

that's his campaign slogan.

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

8. Franken despises coleman with an undying passion.

He didn't run in '06 just so he could take coleman on in '08.

[tom_paine]

9. Well, if he runs in the General Election '08, I'll support him

Coleman must go!

[scarletwoman]

16. Are you a Minnesotan? If not, you will not be voting in the Minnesota election. (nt)

[Mojambo]

19. Doesn't mean that they can't support his candidacy financially. n/t

[scarletwoman]

24. Yes. But why would they do that if Minnesotans don't want Franken as their candidate?

Isn't that pretty damn arrogant?

sw

[Left Is Write]

31. I am a Minnesotan by birth and raising (34 years), but I have lived in Idaho

the last six years. We had time to vote for Mark Dayton in the '00 primary before moving to Idaho.

If Franken is the party's candidate against Coleman, I will support him too. I would support any Democrat in the general election against Coleman. If current Minnesota residents want another Democrat, then the primaries will take care of that.

I have always been bitter that Norm Coleman got the senate seat that rightfully belonged to Paul Wellstone.

[scarletwoman]

38. I've been bitter about Coleman's win, too. But I do NOT want Franken.

Obviously, I'll vote for ANY Democrat over Coleman. But I DO NOT WANT FRANKEN to be the DFL candidate. I think it would be an absolute disaster.

I will work my butt off to make sure that Franken doesn't win the primary.

sw

(edited for punctuation error)

[Mojambo]

Who says Minnesotans don't want him as a candidate?

I mean, I know you don't, but you don't presume to speak for all Minnesotans, do you?

Besides, we all know that Senators do far more than just represent their own state. Senate elections have been national issues long before this one.

See Joe Lieberman (2006)

[scarletwoman]

39. Well, *I'M* saying it as a DFL activist. I'm sure there are *some* Minnesota Dems that are okay

with a Franken candidacy. However, speaking as a politically involved Minnesotan, I haven't run across any DFL party activists who are enthused about Franken.

The primary election will tell, of course. Therefore, until those results are in, I would greatly prefer that non-Minnesotans refrain from telling us Minnesotans who we should vote for. And I reserve the right to excoriate any non-Minnesotan who presumes to fund and push a candidate on us that we may not really want.

sw

(edited for misspelling)

[mzmolly]

55. I greatly prefer Minnesotans not speak for one another. I am encouraged

that Al Franken has support from people across the nation. That tells me he can compete financially.

[dflprincess]

68. Let's hope we don't have a primary

We're far better off when the endorsed candidate doesn't have a primary. Rather than spending the whole summer running against another DFLer, I hope we can devote ourselves to destroying Normie. I hope he loses by a bigger margin than Kennedy did this year.

[tom_paine]

27. No disrespect, scarletwoman, but I have supported other states' candidates

with my wallet.

Given that I was someone who, even before 9/11 during my initial involvements, said repeatedly (and I am sure that it's all archived here @ DU) that Wellstone was "my Senator" because he stood out above and beyond all the spineless Dems who weren't resisting at all.

I also said that I didn't agree with everything Wellstone believed, but that it didn't matter because I admired him as a man of honor and integrity. Had he lived, he very likely would have been my Presidential candidate (if he ran in '04 or '08). I had very strong and positive feelings about him the more I read and knew of him.

And when the Busheviks murdered him (my opinion, feel free to disagree), I cried and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

That little fucker Coleman KNOWS, too, or they wouldn't have given a rookie Senator the Chair of the Committee on Investigations.

Anyway, no I am not a Minnesotan. But I have a couple distant family members in Minnesota and Minnesotan friends. And Wellstone needs to be avenged, even if it is only by rescuing his seat from the Busheviks.

And what I was saying, anyway, is that WHOEVER runs against Bushevik Norman, I will be send a little scratch their way.

Sorry if I got your regional dander up.

[scarletwoman]

35. I'm a Minnesotan and I DON'T want Franken. So I'm asking, are you going to fund a candidate that

many Minnesotans DON'T want?

Wellstone had the wholehearted support of Minnesota Democrats. I'm telling you, as a Minnesota Democrat, that I KNOW that Franken does NOT have that kind of support.

So, are you proposing to support a candidate that Minnesota Democrats do NOT support? Why would you do that?

sw

[MonkeyFunk]

37. Isn't that what primary elections are for?

I've supported out-of-state candidates - they were opposed by people, too.

I don't understand your claim that because YOU don't like him, it's somehow wrong for anybody else to support him.

[scarletwoman]

40. I'm saying, pushing Franken on Minnesota just because YOU like him pisses me off.

Wait until the primaries and THEN help out with the Dem candidate -- whoever he may be.

If there turns out to be a genuine Minnesota groundswell in support of Franken, fine -- please help him and us out.

But if there ISN'T a genuine Minnesota groundswell for Franken -- then please get off the Franken thing and support the Dem candidate we really DO want.

I don't see why this is such a complicated concept for people to grasp.

sw

[MonkeyFunk]

41. I do see

why it's difficult.

you're telling us NOT to support somebody we like because YOU don't like him.

Sorry, you don't get to tell me what to do or who to support.

[scarletwoman]

43. I get to vote or not vote for him, you don't. I will fight tooth and nail for someone else to win

the primary. Are you going to fight against me and all the other Minnesotans who DON'T want Franken?

If you don't want Norm Coleman returned to the Senate, then support whomever the Minnesota DFL voters choose to run against Coleman in the primary election.

The more outsiders try to push Franken on us, the less likely we will go along with it.

sw

[MonkeyFunk]

47. any time

ANYBODY supports somebody in a primary, they're going against other people in their party who support other candidates.

That's normal, natural and nothing to get upset about.

Support who you want, I'll support who I want.

[scarletwoman]

50. Well, I will put my faith in the Democratic voters of Minnesota to decide who we want to run against

Coleman in 2008. I'd really prefer that a Democrat win that election, and I highly doubt that Franken will be able to do it.

sw

[mzmolly]

49. I wish you'd refrain from speaking for Minnesotans.

If people want to support Franken, it's their dime. :shrug:

[scarletwoman]

53. I'm speaking for the rural DFL party activists that I know.

If Metro DFLers are happy about a Franken candidacy, I hope they realize that it will be a hard sell in "greater" Minnesota.

sw

[mzmolly]

56. I hope you realize that the metro has a greater number people.

And, that Franken will have time to reach out to rural voters. I don't know what dog you have in the race, but your tone is offensive. Please don't speak for "Minnesotans" when you speak about a particular candidate.

[scarletwoman]

59. Oh, so fucking sorry for my "offensive" tone. Fine. Go ahead and vote for Franken,

and get ready for another 6 years of Coleman.

Franken's an egoistic phony. But I guess that's what sells among "liberals" these days.

sw

[mzmolly]

61. Oh no PLEASE, continue to f*cking bully people and pretend to speak

for an entire state while your at it! :eyes:

[scarletwoman]

63. It's "YOU'RE", not YOUR, btw. At least you give a window on the relative intelligence of the

Franken supporter.

[mzmolly]

66. Oh no, how shall I eva show my face here again? The grammar police have arrived

and I do believe I have erred. :eyes:

However, I have no idea which post YOU'RE talking about? Care to provide a link? The only place I used either word as far as I can tell, is when I said > "your tone is offensive."

That said, I'd rather have an error in grammar, than be completely obnoxious. :)

[scarletwoman]

70. The post to which I am referring is the post to which I replied.

"...pretend to speak for an entire state while your at it!"

(my underline)

I'd rather be "completely obnoxious" than make an error in grammar. Language is precious to me.

sw

[mzmolly]

71. Language must be precious as you've corrected a few errors of your own.

What's precious to me is treating people how I wish to be treated. Language is secondary.

On edit, I must apologize for MY tone in this discussion. I do not wish to wrangle with a fellow DFL-er.

Peace
:hi:

[scarletwoman]

72. I do strive to correct any errors that I make. Which is why, when I edit a post,

I state why I have done so.

In a strictly verbal medium, it is my opinion that verbal acuity and accuracy is actually quite important.

I strive to be compassionate, but that does not mean that I suffer fools gladly.

sw

[mzmolly]

74. I would not trade my humility/humanity for excellent grammar

under any circumstances. Are you familiar with the concept of emotional intelligence? http://www.eiconsortium.org/

For the record I happen to be an "unedumacated" blue collar type Democrat. I'm the kind of person the DFL represents on a regular basis. And, I'm not ashamed to admit that at times I confuse 'you're' with 'your.' *gasp* I'm also not ashamed of the fact that I am a graduate of "Saint Paul Technical College" and not some "fancy" accredited university. ;)

Also, I found this "law" interesting and germane to our conversation > Moen's Law of Corrections "Any post critical of spelling, grammar, or punctuation errors will acquire a few. If Great Murphy is feeling particularly cruel, you will end up misspelling 'misspelled'."

Perhaps being so exacting about the grammar/spelling of others, explains the need for you to correct so many mistakes of your own?

And, speaking of "suffering fools," I feel it's a "fools" tactic to resort to spelling/grammar corrections when the substance of an argument lacks?

Now, I did get a bit windy so feel free to correct any spelling/grammar you may find personally offensive.

Edited for various reasons. :hi:

[scarletwoman]

73. So now I must reply to your edit. Therefore,

peace to you, too.

:hippie:
sw

[mzmolly]

75. And now, I must reply to "your" reply to my edit.

Have a great night.

:pals:

[mzmolly]

62. By the way, that egotistic phoney worked for FREE while AAR got off the ground.

THAT'S what it takes to sell THIS liberal. And, I'm getting ready to kick Coleman's ass to the "f*cking" curb, you go ahead and piss and moan about it, just don't "pretend" to speak for me.

[mzmolly]

48. As a Minnesotan I disagree with you.

And, I'm wondering why you think he wouldn't get support?

Franken is a friend of the Wellstone family, and is a member of the advisory committee at Wellstone Action. http://wellstone.org/about/advisors.aspx

[Occulus]

69. You are 'many Minnesotans?' n/t

[tom_paine]

76. Clearly you are very pissed. Listen to what I said

And what I was saying, anyway, is that WHOEVER runs against Bushevik Norman, I will be send a little scratch their way.

I never get involved in Democratic Primaries from other states. Lately I don't get involved in primaries almost at all because I won't waste my spare time and energy fighting other Democrats when by far the greater enemy of the nation and of freedom are the Busheviks.

Jeez, chill out. I will support whoever wins the Minnesota Democratic primary, OK?

[mzmolly]

51. Please understand that the statements made are not supported by THIS Minnesotan.

I happen to be thrilled at the prospect of Franken for Senate. :hi:

[Mojambo]

14. He is going to absolutely CRUSH Coleman.

Al and I don't see eye to eye on every issue, but I believe he's going to be a superior Senator.

[CrazyForKucinich]

21. And this Minnesotan wants someone who has some common sense

Like getting the fuck out of Iraq ASAP.

You're not getting my vote Al.

[scarletwoman]

25. Thank you! I can't believe all these non-Minnesotans who seem convinced that a Franken candidacy

would be a good thing!

No thanks!

sw

[jgraz]

23. He'll make a great Senator

I never cared for his radio show (just not my taste), but he will scare the shit out of the Rethugs and DINOs. It'll be great to kick Coleman's sorry ass out of the senate.

[AX10]

26. Senator Al Franken-D

What if we got O'Reilly before a committee in which Franken sits on?!? :D

[mzmolly]

57. He would be amazing to watch in the Senate.

:toast:

[Justpat]

28. I hope he beats Coleman by a landslide.

Go Al!

[terrya]

29. Same here.

I think this is great news. I think Franken can win this one...and it would strengthen our majority in the Senate.

Hell, I live in Illinois and I'll send a contribution. :-)

[joeunderdog]

30. How do they count the votes in MN?

I know Al ignores the subject of vote fraud, even when the Chimp wins twice by it. Still mad at him for that. How is MN for transparency?

[cynthia]

42. Many districts in the state use the optical scan system

and now that we have gotten rid of the wacho secretary of state Kiffmeyer-R and replaced her with Mark Ritchie, who actually has some integrity, I feel confident that we will have a vote we can rely on. Now if we can just keep Al Franken off the private planes.......

I can't wait to see Coleman thrown out of office. I have no doubt that whomever runs against him will win. He is the sorriest senator in Washinton, and he stole Wellstone's seat the only way he could

[MoonRiver]

32. YES!!!

Go AL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:kick: Repuke Coleman's ARSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[MiniMe]

36. Might make for some interesting Senate speeches

edited because I can't spell

[Tatiana]

44. Well, thank goodness. Count Minnesota as a pickup for the Dems. n/t

[Nutmegger]

45. Get rid of Coleman!

He's a disguating :puke:.

MN needs a Dem Senator!

[MzNov]

46. Great way to start the Continuation of Landslide of '06, Part '08 !!

GO AL !

:bounce:

[Deep13]

58. What's the difference between Stuart Smalley and Bill O'Reilly?

Besides all the Worst-Person-in-the-World awards?

Franken admits that Smalley is just a TV character. B.O. takes himself seriously.

[Auggie]

77. He just drips integrity. Go get 'em Al.

I might even send in a contribution from CA.

[terrya]

78. Kick...the objective is to get rid of Norm Coleman in 2008.

Al Franken has the best chance of doing so. Instant name recognition, solid liberal Democratic credentials, excellent fundraising potential. He's a damn good candidate in any state, in any contest.

I've been reading some claptrap in this thread about how awful Franken would be as a candidate. Complete and utter bullshit. Al Franken is the best chance we have of picking up that Senate seat.

Period.

[Deep13]

79. Heh, heh. 49 minus one (so far).