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MDE EXCLUSIVE: EXPOSING AL FRANKEN’S CAMPAIGN FOR THE U.S. SENATE; PROFESSOR CALLS USE OF UNIVERSITY RESOURCES “REGRETFUL”
By Michael B. Brodkorb | January 22, 2007
The email below was forwarded to me at my blog on Saturday morning. The Republicans AND Democrats that have seen the email have expressed great concern that Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs/U of M resources will be/are being used to advance Al Franken's candidacy for the U.S. Senate.
Regardless of the last two sentences, this email was sent out on an internal Humphrey Institute email system.
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From: HHH SS <hhhss@UMN.EDU>
Subj: [HHH-STU-PERSONAL-L] Al Franken for US Senate
Date: Wed Jan 17, 2007 4:34 pm
Size: 1K
To: HHH-STU-PERSONAL-L@LISTS.UMN.EDU
Al Franken has asked me to put together a Minnesota team Franken. Those of you who read his Liars book may recall that he drew upon JFKennedy School students to help him research particular points. We would offer some substantive policy expertise, some knowledge of who does what where at the U and in local non-profits, and most importantly, the ability to find out quickly through research things we do not know. I think it will be loads of fun and a great learning experience for those interested in honing their public policy skills and learning more about political campaigns. It also provides a unique opportunity to advocate for one's own policy position. Are you interested? If so, send me an email. I'll give you more information about the selection process.
I want to make very clear that this email is from me as an individual, not as a member of the Humphrey Institute faculty and that this work is not part of my outreach duties as an HHH faculty member. I am doing this work on my own time. It will not enhance a course grade or count as research assistant time.
Sally
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According to my source the email was sent out by Sally Kenney, a professor at the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affair. I contacted Ms. Kenney to confirm she sent the email and that it was sent out on a University email system. Ms. Kenney responded by writing:
"We seek to encourage our students to become actively engaged in politics across the political spectrum and provide many opportunities for them to connect with political figures of all sorts. That is the mission of the Humphrey Institute."
Predictably, it appears Ms. Kenney is on message about providing a wide range of "opportunities" for students of the Humphrey Institute.
Unfortunately, that is not what the email solitication by the author of the email indicates.
Ms. Kenney begins her email by writing, "Al Franken has asked me to put together a Minnesota team Franken." She is not suggesting to the people on the taxpayer funded list serve that she is offering one of a variety of educational opportunities. She is utilizing a taxpayer funded tool not available to competing campaigns (Republican, Democrat, Independent, Green or otherwise) as someone Franken asked to establish an organization for HIS Senate campaign.
Ms. Kenney goes on to write, "We [emphasis mine] would offer some substantive policy expertise, some knowledge of who does what where at the U and in local non-profits, and most importantly, the ability to find out quickly through research things we do not know."
Who is the 'we' that Ms, Kenney is referring to? Is she referring to 'we' as the Franken Campaign? Or is she referring to 'we' as the Humphrey Institute? If she did mean by 'we' the Humphrey Institute, then her disclaimer is just as hollow, is simply an attempt to cover her obvious abuse of taxpayer resources, and is directly contradictory to what she is attempting to disclaim.
Anyone could appear qualified to run for the U.S. Senate if they had an entire school working on their behalf. Franken must realize that he will need more substantive policy proposals than "shoot[ing] the elderly into space" to reduce the deficit if he wants to be taken seriously as a candidate.
I'm not attacking the Humphrey Institute, but rather Franken thinking he can use the public/taxpayer resources of the Humphrey Institute like he used the private resources of Harvard University.
In the above email, Ms. Kenney wrote that Franken "drew upon JFKennedy School students to help him research particular points."
According to publish reports, Franken had a team of students helping him research "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right"
"In fact, he only began researching in January, when he accepted a fellowship at the Shorenstein Center for the Press, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government.
A group of 14 students he dubbed TeamFranken served as his research elves, digging up howlers regularly retailed by right-wing commentators. Valuably, he also retraces a few moments during the 2000 election to find out how Al Gore was ambushed and misquoted by an allegedly liberal press." Source: The Globe and Mail, September 20, 2003
Franken and his supporters are naive to think he can use Humphrey Institute faculty, students, and taxpayer resources to add his campaign for the U.S. Senate like he used Harvard students to research his book. Once again, Harvard is a private institution and the University of Minnesota is a public institution.
Franken's campaign hasn't officially started, yet the mistakes are already happening.
I contacted Larry Jacobs, a professor at the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs about the email. He called the use of University resources "regretful":
A cornerstone of the University is freedom of speech. HHH is open to many political parties and viewpoints. The Institute, for instance, recently hosted a retreat of the entire legislature (two thirds attended from both parties) and the Institute's advisory boards reflect the political and other forms of diversity in Minnesota. My Center's programming is determinedly fair.
It is regretful that Professor Kenney chose to use a university resource — email — to conduct her political work.
I am, though, reassured by Professor Kenney's commitment to keep her political and University work separate. This is a strong and welcome commitment. For what it is worth, I understand that Professor Kenney's email was sent out on a "personal" listing.
I believe Professor Jacobs and respect his work and his efforts to keep the programming fair.
Finally, political science departments routinely advertise opportunities for students to become active in government and campaigns. I think the above email from Ms. Kenney crossed the line between notifying interested parties about campaign opportunities to advocating for a specific campaign.
Please check back to Minnesota Democrats Exposed for more information on this developing story.
Topics: Uncategorized |
January 22nd, 2007 at 12:48 pm
That’s my alma matter! I tried to avoid the Marxists in the PoliSci department and for the most part had pretty evenhanded presentation in class, but I still always knew where they stood. I never, however, had any of them solicit my classmates or I to a specific campaign. And to pretend that getting involved with the Profs’ preferred candidate wouldn’t lead to preferential treatment (T.A. positions and very competetive) later is laughably obtuse and Kenney’s statement otherwise is just C.Y.A. legal nonsense. In the past professors forwarded opportunities to the department and they sent the opportunities out to the students. The only reason that Prof. Kenney would likely send this out on her own and direct would be to attempt to avoid more scrutiny on her activities. A black eye to the Humphrey Institute, even if it doesn’t get any media attention.
January 22nd, 2007 at 12:57 pm
This is an outrage.
I would like to remind Ms. Kenney that I (and other taxpayers) pay for the resources she, as an agent of the Franken campaign, are using to organize Franken’s imminent campaign operation.
I don’t support Al Franken, and I am strongly opposed to the use of my money to help his organization.
It is nice to see that Professor Jacobs is opposed to the Franken Campaign’s abuse of a taxpayer funded resource in the institution he helps lead. He seems to be doing the right thing in his criticism.
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:04 pm
The fact that she sent the e-mail on a University computer doesn’t give me much heartburn. Many of us send personal e-mail over our employer’s email system (like I am now).
What is much more troubling is that she obviously used a proprietary list of addressees - it’s no different than a US Bank employee using a proprietary US Bank list to send out a personal political solicitation.
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:12 pm
MDE EXCLUSIVE: EXPOSING AL FRANKEN’S CAMPAIGN FOR THE US SENATE
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:12 pm
Predictably, it appears Ms. Kenney is on message about providing a wide range of “opportunities” for students of the Humphrey Institute.
I’ll bet she can’t point to one example where she sent a similar email helping a conservative candidate.
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:16 pm
You got her on this one.
It seems that a posting on one of the many job and opportunity boards around the classes would have sufficed. I know students that would have jumped for this, for the simple fact alone that Harvard’s JFK students have gotten a lot of play for their research assistance with him on the books. A little grad school rivalry.
It appears that she was looking for some recognition of being connected in some kind of way to Franken. I doubt if he knows her.
To make it fair, she needs to contact the Coleman campaign (Sheehan), and have them submit the same opportunity for her to forward on to that exact list.
In college I received solicitations from Republicans all of the time (though I was active in the Rural Democrat Caucus).
The burning outrage is pretty phoney.
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:20 pm
Like this is unusual? Clearly corrupt, but not even mildly unusual.
In Wright County we have educators carrying out the political agenda of the Teacher’s Union on public school assets virtually every election cycle.
They feel entitled, obviously, and no one bothers to listen when citizens complain. Bureaucrats only seem to listen when the complaints come from democrats. Go figure.
I can’t recall the last time public assets were used to promote a republican candidate for anything. Does anyone?
Is it true that Gluek’s has a new promotion where you get a special beer mug with unlimited refils and someone else pays your bar tab?
I think they call it the FrankenStein.
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:21 pm
Didn’t Franken have a bunch of Harvard students write his Liars book?
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:26 pm
Certainly this will be covered in the mainstream media, right?
Nice job Michael!
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Michael,
One has to assume that if Franken employs resources (services, personnel, technologies, etc.) from the U of M, Harvard or any other organization (tax payer funded or private), then his campaign (and possibly those organizations) must disclose the monetary value of their in-kind contributions, and that the value must conform to campaign finance laws.
Correct? If I were reading this correctly, Franken’s campaign is abusing public resources; and also violating campaign finance regulations.
Is this a fair interpretation?
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:33 pm
… Moreover, couldn’t use of HHI and resources from non-profits for clearly partisan purposes jeopardize those organizations’ non-profit status?
I would expect Kenney to exercise better judgment than this.
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:49 pm
Suprise, people at MDE are rushing to judgement without any context!
Notice it is to the “personal” server list at HHH. That list is for students, staff and faculty to use in the event you want to send out invites to personal parties, send pictures of your cats or anything else that does not have to do with official HHH buisness (i.e. all informal emails that are not appropriate to use the main email serves list for) You actually have to subscribe to this email list in order to get them, which I as a student never did.
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:54 pm
James: But the server list is University property, correct? The email system is owned by the University, correct?
January 22nd, 2007 at 1:56 pm
Mitch, this is totally different than an employee at US Bank communicating with the rest of the employees about joining a campaign effort.
It is far worse.
In the US Bank example, the FEC would be all over it and Liberal’s would be crying about Corporate Contributions.
However, I would much rather that happen (after all, business is affected by what Government does, so why shouldn’t business have the right to speak?) than have our tax money go to such organizing.
At least with the US Bank example, if they were organizing for Franken, I could vote with my feet and bank at TCF or Wells or any number of other options.
When our government uses our tax money to organize on a particular side, that is corrupt. And Drew gets it exactly right. This happens way too often in public schools, and is probably pervasive in local units of Government across the state.
The one part I disagree with the original post, and at least one comment, is that I do believe this makes it more difficult for Jacobs to be an impartial analyst on the race.
Whenever he speaks on the issue from here on out, in his capacity with the Humphrey Institute, I think this issue will lurk in the shadows (at least among close observers).
January 22nd, 2007 at 2:02 pm
Who are they kidding? Keeping the political work separate from the University work? Yeah, right.
January 22nd, 2007 at 2:15 pm
The University creates spaces and places for personal ideas to be exchanged. There are tables set up for the Young Republicans and Democrats, the library hosted blogs where ideas and opinions are posted, and there even the school paper leaves a safe place for personal opinions of all political idealogies can be shared. The personal server email list at the HHH is such a created place and I would hope that regardless of political affiliations, we would all be ok with government (i.e. university) created places where the exchange and market place of ideas can thrive.
January 22nd, 2007 at 2:16 pm
and i suck at editing my posts before i hit submit, sorry.
January 22nd, 2007 at 2:41 pm
James — you’re treading in a gray area to justify a mis-use of resources. There are legitimate concerns to this overreach. A U faculty member used her professional position and the resources of a tax-payer financed institution to engage in political campaigning and solicitation benefiting a particular candidate.
It’s improper, plain and simple. In fact, the use of government resources to drive political campaigns is about as close to the definition of propagandizing as I can think.
This is not a good thing.
January 22nd, 2007 at 2:52 pm
One of the things that bothers me most about comments by the likes of James, is that we can be confident if a business or a church were to “generate that sort of discussion,” (I don’t think that’s what this was) or use their internal email systems to organize for a particular candidate, there would be outrage.
Government does stuff to entities like churches and businesses which can have a profoundly negative effect on them. Yet in the context of a political discussion, many liberals would just as soon silence them.
In this case, it is an agent of the government who is organizing for one side on our dime. That, to me, is terribly dangerous.
And James, even Larry Jacobs admonishes Ms. Kenney about this being an overreach and an abuse.
January 22nd, 2007 at 2:52 pm
- This is a personal, voluntary list that can be unsubscribed from at any time. The list was created for _personal_ interaction with HHH students, and that email completely fits the bill. Someone from Norm Coleman’s camp could post to that list also - not a problem.
- Whining about waste of precious email resources for this is very shallow. Ever heard of spam? The U gets hit harder than any other Minnesota entity.
This whole thing is petty… oh wait, forgot where I was.
January 22nd, 2007 at 2:57 pm
James, I understand what you are saying. I think a lot of us on the right don’t trust university types that get involved in partison politics. It’s one thing to send a personal email on your employers (in this case, taxpayer funded) system. We all do that. It’s another to send out a solicitation to get involved in very partison politics with someone who feels the 34% of Minnesotans who are Republicans are “Lying Liars”.
January 22nd, 2007 at 3:00 pm
“In Wright County we have educators carrying out the political agenda of the Teacher’s Union on public school assets virtually every election cycle.”
My parents (and other relatives) are teachers in the public schools. They are Republicans who keep their politics to themselves. It’s kind of shocking how nasty and narrow minded the Democratic teachers are. I wouldn’t last one month in a government school as I would not put up with the insults and ridicule the public school teachers give Republicans.
January 22nd, 2007 at 3:02 pm
From: Sally Kenney
To: HHH Students, Faculty
Re: Michael Brodkorb
Dear HHH Students and Faculty,
I would like to present you with an opportunity to engage in thoughtful political discourse. I think it would be “loads of fun” to use University resources to conduct opposition research against blogger Michael Brodkorb. When we’re done with that, we’ll help out Franken.
Hugs and Kisses,
Sally
PS Just because I call this a personal email doesn’t eliminate the fact that I am using and encouraging the use of Univeristy resources for this blatantly politial act.
January 22nd, 2007 at 3:10 pm
Did Norm Coleman approach Mrs. Kenney?
Seems to me, you want equal treatment without making equal effort. Al Franken asked her to get the word out to the students, so she did. And rather than see if Norm Coleman would get equal treatment by making the same request, you just jump to the conclusion that he would not.
This is weak, even by MDE’s rapidly declining standards.
January 22nd, 2007 at 3:27 pm
I have to think that Lori Swanson-Hatch is planning to announce a thorough investigation into this.
Or perhaps not.
January 22nd, 2007 at 3:53 pm
Times must be tough for you Michael, you have to do these rinky dink stories, instead of landing a job living off the dole like Pawlenty’s other buds.
January 22nd, 2007 at 4:13 pm
MDE, when are you going to post the memo asking all of the Lefty’s to use the same lines like the obedient sheep they are? I’m certain that is floating around in cyberspace.
Kenney’s email response to you was so dismissive and smug. It reeks of the kind of pompous ivory-tower Leftist elitism that causes such skepticism among real human beings.
I think it is great that you are going to help ensure that they don’t simply use this preexisting taxpayer funded pool of potential sheep to mindlessly organize the Franken field operation.
Keep it up.
January 22nd, 2007 at 4:34 pm
Kenney’s actions were wrong. It doesn’t matter if other non-taxpayer funded employers allow email solicitations for campaign help. The system, the computer and the distribution list are all owned by the taxpayers. There is no justification for this. It is easy for the left to imagine a justification because they see their mission as above the rules and they see academia at all levels as their domain to be used as they see fit. I’m not going to hold my breath waiting for a lefty to leave a critical comment here about Kenney’s actions. They are illogical people with no regard for fair play and honesty.
They would see no inconsistency if they criticized a Republican for doing this exact same thing.
January 22nd, 2007 at 4:54 pm
This isn’t a complicated enough legal case for Hatch to become involved. Still I can see him getting all red in the face, hair flapping. Oh I miss that…like hell I do!
January 22nd, 2007 at 5:06 pm
You guys love to pretend to freak out over stuff like this. The college I attend regularly sends out notices for campaigns, office-holders, and non-profits from all political stripes. None of us here whine that it is partisan.
My school is private, but my point is that college is meant to provide us with opportunities. Michael, have you investigated by asking for all other emails pertaining to political opportunities provided by the staff? Granted, they wouldn’t give them to you because it’s a useless worth of time, but it just seems kinda funny to me that you pretend to freak out over this.
Stop with the petty, David Horowitz-esque, reaching attacks on someone who simply was trying to provide an opportunity to her students.
Stick to accepting illegal campaign contributions, picking a fizzle for Senate, and losing your SD’s legislative races.
January 22nd, 2007 at 5:44 pm
Dude (The), this wasn’t a typical email to students giving notice of an opportunity.
Ms. Kenney was asked to be the organizer for Franken and she refers to herself as part of the campaign in the email she sent out.
This is a captive audience at a taxpayer funded university.
If this were simply a post of one opportunity among many, you’d be absolutely correct.
Jacobs recognizes the difference, why can’t you?
January 22nd, 2007 at 5:49 pm
Why won’t Michael or anyone answer the question about if Norm Coleman made any similar requests that were rejected?
Seems to me y’all are quick to judge the actions of someone based on assumptions that the same rights would not be provided to your guy.
January 22nd, 2007 at 6:03 pm
another Minnesota Democrat Exposed.
MDE, strong work, yet again.
To all Liberals: suck it.
January 22nd, 2007 at 6:23 pm
How is it a democrat exposed if you can’t prove any bias whatsoever?
January 22nd, 2007 at 7:23 pm
Um, her name is PROFESSOR KENNEY, you sexist pigs.
January 22nd, 2007 at 7:40 pm
Thanks kitten.
We’ll all get that right next time, cup cake.
January 22nd, 2007 at 8:13 pm
Clearly Slippery Norman is the better candidate here!
You never know, though… he might be a Democrat by 2008 anyway.
January 22nd, 2007 at 9:31 pm
Has your colleague Mr Banion blogged from his SCSU computer on the state’s time?
January 22nd, 2007 at 9:33 pm
I think we know the answer to that one…
January 22nd, 2007 at 10:02 pm
Come on MDE, why delete the posts that call one of your colleagues out for possible transgressions with state property? No talk about King Banion using State computers and time to blog, on both economics and politcal stuff?
January 22nd, 2007 at 10:50 pm
Have you asked him about this? I think we’d all like to know whether or not he blogs with his computer from the Econ Dept on a state server on the states $? We’d love to know what you come up with.
January 22nd, 2007 at 11:01 pm
Michael - there are listservs at the University that aren’t necessarily University Business. One example is Steve Clift’s “DO Wire list” - which is basically promoting his personal business using the university listserv system.
Here’s the University’s policy on Acceptable Use of Information Technology Resources.
http://process.umn.edu/groups/ppd/documents/policy/Acceptable_Use.cfm
A while back, Alan Fine, had a campaign event at Coffmann Union - the event was clearly unrelated to his research - so there are Republican faculty who misuse University resources also.
At the same time, what will happen as a result of this story in the AP, is that Humphrey Institute professors will be much more hesitant to connect students to campaigns because of this sort of thing.
January 22nd, 2007 at 11:06 pm
As a graduate of a private political science program and a current master’s student at a public university, I can say these types of emails are sent out all the time. Whenever someone contacts the faculty, concerning any sort of political opportunity, the faculty member sends out a message to everyone on the list. I can’t speak for sure about the Humphrey institute, but I’m guessing its the same there. Faculty members are always looking to give their students experience. To do anything else would be a disservice.
January 23rd, 2007 at 9:15 am
No one’s freaking out here. Just calling attention to a troublesome situation.
Perhaps we would all be benefitted by making this discussion more general for the sake of discerning some boundaries.
Are U of M assets indeed paid for by and therefore owned by taxpayers?
Is the professor in question using equipment owned by the University of Minnesota?
Was the email generated during business hours at the University?
Is the professor paid by the University?
Does the professor have a job description or policy manual detailing the usage of University owned equipment for “personal” use? Is there a policy?
If publicly owned assets are used to generate benefit for political campaigns is that a violation of any stated institutional policy?
Is same a violation of any reasonable ethical expectation?
Is there an in-kind contribution according to Section 10 of Minnesota Statutes? How about FEC rules?
If the activity is deemed to be acceptable with regard to these simple questions then no biggie. Somehow, I doubt any reasonable person would conclude that there isn’t some level of impropriety in the form and tenor of the professor’s action.
I think it would be equally improper if a republican candidate were likewise assisted. Only difference is that there would be no question about the impropriety if the intended beneficiary was republican.
Elephant and Ass subject to the same standards.
January 25th, 2007 at 3:01 pm
I am a student at HHH and the vast majority of students considered Kenney’s email to be no different than those we receive every day alerting us to internships and job postings over the student listserv. Other political campaigns from all parties have solicited Humphrey students on many different campaigns, political causes, and advocacy issues without anyone raising a stink.
You are clearly a partisan hack trying to make a mountain out of a molehill, and you ought to be ashamed of yourself for your own academic dishonesty.