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VIDEO: LARRY JACOBS SLAMS TEAM FRANKEN ON ALMANAC
By Michael B. Brodkorb | April 26, 2008
This is the video clip from “Almanac” with Larry Jacobs that I wrote about in this post. Jacobs questioned the “professionalism” of Team Franken and said that “[w]hat’s going on in the Franken campaign is unnerving. Anyone who is a professional, watching this race, it is alarming.”
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This post also appears on Blogs for Norm!, an online community and blog covering the 2008 U.S. Senate campaign in Minnesota. The primary goal of Blogs for Norm! is to organize bloggers who support U.S. Senator Norm Coleman.
Topics: Uncategorized | 26 Comments »
26 Responses to “VIDEO: LARRY JACOBS SLAMS TEAM FRANKEN ON ALMANAC”
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April 27th, 2008 at 1:08 am
The post on Jacobs kind of struck me.
I have been doing some thinking about the Franken situation over the past couple of days, and there are some remarkable similarities between his candidacy and the Mark Kennedy candidacy.
Let me be clear, I don’t compare Mark Kennedy’s ethics or business activities to be anywhere on the same level as Frankens. I think Kennedy, as a CPA, would have followed the rules, followed the law and just have been too committed to making sure he was doing things right.
What I mean is on the political side of the equation.
Mark Kennedy was touted as being able to raise a lot of money.
Al Franken was touted as being able to raise a lot of money.
Mark Kennedy worked the GOP establishment to line up support.
Al Franken worked the DFL establishment to line up support.
Mark Kennedy lined up the political elite of the Minnesota GOP to help clear the field.
Al Franken lined up the political elite of the Minnesota DFL to help clear the field.
Mark Kennedy was hounded for awhile by Rod Grams, who was treated as an inconvenience by party activists
Al Franken was hounded for awhile by Mike Ciresi, who was treated as an inconvenience by party activists.
Mark Kennedy got the support of the NRSC to privately support him while portraying themselves as neutral.
Al Franken got the support of the DSCC to private support him while portraying themselves as neutral.
Mark Kennedy got the endorsement of the GOP.
Al Franken is likely to get the endorsement of the DFL.
Now, Kennedy never got shot down because of business ethics, failing to pay taxes, and generally not acting very Minnesotan. However, he got blown away and the post-election criticism was that he was never really tested — and that the decision to not allow other candidates to get into the fray probably deprived the Republicans of a potentially better candidate.
Franken never faced any real opposition that could gain steam because the labor unions and the DFL party elite decided that Franken was going to be the horse they were going to ride. The downside for the DFL is they now have a candidate whose blemishes are beginning to show and the only alternative they have is Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer.
History does have a tendency to repeat itself. It will be interesting to see if Mark Kennedy and Al Franken share more in common than wanting to be in the United States Senate.
April 27th, 2008 at 10:28 am
I think the Republicans just overestimated Mark Kennedy’s appeal as a candidate. I am a Democrat, and so of course much of Kennedy’s appeal was lost on me at the outset. Still, even when I make an effort to put my political views aside, I didn’t see him as a very exciting candidate. Amy Klobuchar, while perhaps not the most charismatic candidate possible either, was probably more likable, and better suited to what Minnesota was looking for in a senator at that moment in time. It was also a great year for Democrats.
April 27th, 2008 at 10:32 am
Hiram, I think you are right, which is the point I am trying to make. I think that Democrats have overestimated Franken’s appeal as a candidate. And, your further point about Klobuchar is right, too. While Minnesotans may not have saw her as charismatic or exciting, they trusted her and saw her as having strong core values. I think the same may be at play this year. While Minnesotans may not think Norm is the greatest thing in the world, I think they see that he has strong Minnesota values and he has a track record of serving the state, as attorney general and as Mayor.
April 27th, 2008 at 11:49 am
Yeah, good point. What Al has spent the last year and a half or so doing is 1)Raise money and 2)Try to convince people he’s not running as a joke.
He may have convinced them that he’s not running as a joke, but that doesn’t yet give anyone a tangible reason to support him. Norm has the tangible reasons.
April 27th, 2008 at 12:05 pm
Jacobs is talking nonsense. How do you “scrub” a guy like Franken?
Franken has parlayed his ability to articulate Democrat hatred. The problem is that unfettered rage cannot wash away Franken’s cluelessness.
The only ’scrubbing’ that would be effective with a guy like Angry Al is a scrubbing from the ticket.
April 27th, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Franken has parlayed his ability to articulate Democrat hatred [into millions of dollars and a shot at the party's endorsement.]
April 27th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
Well, it’s early stages. It’s not too late for Democrats to change their mind. Al has charisma but I know there are people out there who would be a lot easier to elect to the senate.
April 27th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
I think hate is a visceral thing that can only be sustained for so long. I think Franken shot his “hatred as motivation” cache sometime ago — all he has left now is more money than JNP — a lot less money than Coleman — and growing questions about his credibility, and his ability to run a campaign from now through November without being hit by the “drip drip” of what else might be out there.
April 27th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
After watching Al on a few recent TV issues, it’s difficult to make the case he has “charisma.” He has the same “charisma” as Mark Dayton, which is to say he comes off as a slow-witted boob.
It’s tough to understand what appeal Al ever had with any audience… with the exception of what Swiftee noted… he parlayed his ability to articulate Democrat hate in to millions of dollars.
Al Franken, Randi Rhodes… both are Democrat hate-mongering lunatics…
April 27th, 2008 at 3:55 pm
Al really tones it down in his public appearances. He is very conscious of not appearing serious.
The “hatred” theme is one of those generic Republican talking points that, I hope, has finally worn out. It was useful in that it allowed Republicans to avoid substantive debate with their opponents by suggesting their arguments weren’t based on logic, but the product of an irrational emotion. It was a form of ad hominem attack. My own belief is that when somebody I am debating starts attacking me personally, that’s because they don’t have an effective response to my arguments. I also believe that the use of those kinds of avoidance techniques was a substantially contributed to the various policy disasters of the last 8 years.
April 27th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
As you can probably tell, I am really irritated with Al Franken at the moment. He has been planning this run for the senate basically for the last six years. All these housekeeping details should have been cleared up long ago. But let’s not forget, the reason the Republicans want to make this campaign about Al’s comedy routines, and his workers comp issues, and whatever other petty business issues their oppo researchers can come up with is that they don’t want this campaign to be about Social Security, and health care, and Iraq, and the other disastrous policies of the last six years which Norm Coleman supported then and is trying to distance himself from now.
April 27th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
So, Hiram, have you heard the garbage and filth from Franken’s mouth on political issues? Substance free would be one way to describe it. Hate would be another. He’s articulated Democrat hate… and the fact is, what Al Frank articulates is not based in any logic or reason. It’s nothing but unfiltered, emotional trash.
Al Franken, Randy Rhodes, the Daily Kos, Air America, et. al. Those are representative samples from the bottom of Left’s scum barrel.
You want disasterous polices? Then surrender to Al Queda, fuck up healthcare with “universal” policies, stay the liberal, head in the sand course with Social Security, and create a full roster of new problems to complement the already full collection of Democrat driven disasters on our plates.
They’ve had two full years now, and accomplished NOTHING!!!
April 27th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
Seriously, Hiram, tell me in plain English how Democrats plan to fix anything. Obama preaches a platitudes of “change”… what the hell does that mean?
Seems the only idea Democrats have is the same idea Democrats have always have… centralize and grab power, surrender personal liberties to the federal government, regulate the hell out of everything, and tax everything that moves.
We’ve tried that. So have all the socialist and communist states that have crumbled in to ruins… Which is really the liberal agenda anyway… ruin America.
April 27th, 2008 at 4:50 pm
The “Democratic Party is the party of hate”, talking point has been so successful for so long, I do understand why it is so hard to give up. But as any advertiser will tell you, even the most successful campaigns wear out and lose their effectiveness after a while. Personally, I miss the Taco Bell chihuahua, but I do understand it’s important to move on.
I would suggest, and I hope I am not being too personal, that just in terms of how to frame an argument, that it is probably not the best choice to complain about “Democrat hate” in one paragraph, and then talk about how those who disagree with you are “from the bottom of Left’s scum barrel” in the next. Kind of lessens the impact if you know what I mean.
April 27th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
The difference is, Hiram, that those clowns aren’t “the bottom of the Left’s scum barrel” because they disagree with me. They’re “the bottom of the Left’s scum barrel” because they are idiotic filth, purvayors of base emotion and hate… kinda like the KKK, neo-Nazi’s and Al Sharpton.
I probably disagree with you, but I wouldn’t put you in that category… You don’t seem particularly hate-filled…
Al Franken, like Randi Rhodes is a purveyor of hate. He made millions preaching to a like-minded choir of hateful lunatics… jerks who who offer nothing to any debate. For example, Franken’s ridicule of a college Republican at Carleton… as that kid isn’t subjected to enough abuse on that campus…
Time and time again, liberals are defeated on the issues. The only way liberals win elections is by lying and by pretending they are conservatives… e.g. Walz.
April 27th, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Chestnut,
are you calling Al a Nazi?
that may be your most far out there claim yet.
April 27th, 2008 at 6:44 pm
I never called Al a Nazi. Where’d you get that idea?
I did say, however, that he is a purveyor of hate. I think that was pretty clear.
April 27th, 2008 at 8:07 pm
“They’re “the bottom of the Left’s scum barrel†because they are idiotic filth, purvayors of base emotion and hate… kinda like the KKK, neo-Nazi’s and Al Sharpton.”
Really, you make my point far more eloquently than I ever could. I particularly note the innuendo linking Al with the Nazi’s which you immediately deny when Yoni called you on it.
April 27th, 2008 at 8:38 pm
Bottom Line: If the republicants were truly not afraid of Al Franken, they would lick their chops holding this stuff until after the endorsement. But they are throwing everything they got right now, because they know math isn’t in their favor if Al gets the DFL nod.
In related news, I think it will be great if T-Paw does get the VP nod and not only he can’t carry his own state as McCain loses, but Norm loses too. I wonder if Jesse would have a spare bedroom in Mexico for T-Paw to stay in for a few months while the state continues to laugh at his bad decisions?
April 27th, 2008 at 9:47 pm
Told you so. I gotta go make sure there’s enough booze on my yacht to last the next six years… WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!!!
April 27th, 2008 at 10:51 pm
Hiram, that’s quite a demonstration of mental gymnastics. It’s ridiculous to construe a comment that Al Franken and those groups are purveyors of to mean that Al Franken a member of those groups.
That’s like saying that 747s are large and elephants are large. Therefore 747s are elephants. Oops, I guess my innuendo linked 747s to elephants.
Are you serious? That’s nearly as stupid as anything Frank Alan or TenStrokeTommy post here.
April 28th, 2008 at 6:50 am
I didn’t construe it that way, you did. A lot of what folks these days is mention elephants and 747s in the same breath, hoping that people will link elephants and 747’s in their minds, but also in a way that’s deniable when it’s called. It’s a cheap rhetorical technique but useful in a forum where response is difficult such as talk radio. But it shouldn’t be allowed to work where dialogue is easy such as on a message board.
So my message basically, is what works with Jason Lewis doesn’t necessarily work here.
April 28th, 2008 at 11:10 am
Well, you’re a lost cause then. It’s a complete waste of time talking to someone who reaches such ridiculous conclusions.
April 28th, 2008 at 1:07 pm
I do understand that the exchange isn’t working out so well for you.
April 28th, 2008 at 1:27 pm
It’s worked out perfectly for me. My point is clear. It’s your addled brain that is cloudy.
Here’s a clue, if I wanted to call Al Franken a fascist, I’d call him a fascist. I haven’t said that.
April 29th, 2008 at 1:14 pm
Frank:
Basic rule of politics! You get your opponent defined before he defines himself.
Al Franken thanks to the efforts of MDE and the Republicans has been defined as a tax cheater who doesn’t play by the rules and proposes taxes increases that hurts the average person (remember he supported raising the gasoline taxes before this mess took place)
Al Franken also shows that he doesn’t have the temper to be a US Senator.
And keep in mind how on Earth if Al can’t manage a simple corportation is going to manage the job of US Senator.
One reason why Kennedy got killed in 2006 was that he fell behind a margin early and couldn’t recover from. It seems like the Republicans are trying to do the same. Get Franken so burried he can’t recover no matter how brilliantly he runs and no matter how many millions get thrown at Norm in negative commercials.
Walter Hanson