If you think Congress' performance is laughable, it may be getting even funnier soon. Former Saturday Night Live comedian Al Franken has clinched the Minnesota Democratic party's nomination for his bid to be a U.S. Senator.
Franken, a 57-year-old Emmy award-winning comedian, first gained momentum as a political force following the publishing of his best-selling book Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot (1999), and later for Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right (2003). The successes prompted Franken, a graduate of Harvard College, to return to his alma matter to serve as a Fellow for Harvard's JFK School of Government, campaign hard for John Kerry in 2004, and become a syndicated, liberal radio talk show host.
The democratic nod of approval pits Franken, 57, against Republican incumbent Senator Norm Coleman. But many contend the comedian will have a hard convincing voters to take him seriously.
Part of Franken's campaign strategy for a Senate seat revolve around surviving political attacks about unpaid back taxes, a 2000 Playboy article he wrote entitled "Porn-O-Rama," which extolled the contributions of computers to the porn industry and detailed potential human-machine sexual encounters, and some off-color jokes about rape made when he was just a comedian working off shock value.
According to Bloomberg News, "the Playboy controversy followed news in April that Franken
spent $70,000 on back taxes and penalties in 17 states where he'd
made paid appearances from 2003 to 2006. Franken blamed an
accountant's mistake for delays in paying out-of-state taxes."
Of his other less popular comments and "creative works," Franken expressed regret and issued an apology.
``Most of the stuff I wrote was really funny and really
appropriate, and some if it wasn't funny and wasn't appropriate,''
he said. ``I am sorry if what I did has caused some people to
doubt my commitment to them on some issues.''
Regardless of what you might think about his comedy style, Franken's campaign is anything but a joke. One look at his website quickly reveals a candidate trying to connect with his constituents, promote social causes like environmental protection, and embrace web tools like blogs, podcasts, and YouTube to promote his candidacy. Come January, don't be surprised to hear a whimsical retort to the President's State of the Union address from Senator Franken.
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