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COLEMAN FOR U.S. SENATE PRESS RELEASE: “…AD FEATURES DEMOCRATS IN THEIR OWN WORDS SPEAKING OUT AGAINST AL FRANKEN’S WORK”
By Michael B. Brodkorb | August 12, 2008
ST. PAUL – Repeating the words of Al Franken’s fellow DFLers on why his work should be of concern to Minnesota voters, the Coleman for Senate campaign today released its latest television ad. “History,†a thirty-second spot, features comments made by Reps. McCollum and Walz as well as DFL Feminist Caucus co-founder Jeri Rasmussen and Franken’s primary challenger, Priscilla Lord Faris.
“Inappropriate, indefensible, shocking and uncomfortable. All these words have been used by Democrats to describe Al Franken’s work,†said Cullen Sheehan, campaign manager. “These aren’t partisan Republicans criticizing Al Franken, these are Democrats, in their own words, describing why Franken’s thirty-year record raises serious questions for Minnesotans.â€
“History†can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/colemanforsenate.
“History†Script:
Announcer: “Inappropriate. Indefensible. Shocking. Uncomfortable. All words describing Al Franken’s work from leading Minnesota Democrats. His Democrat opponent’s ad even says this:â€
Priscilla Lord Faris [from Lord Faris Spot]: “No matter how many millions he spends, it is clear that his history of pornography, degrading women and minorities, and his questionable financial transactions will continue to be the focus.â€
Announcer: “Al Franken. In the words of other Democrats.â€
“History†Backup:
REP. TIM WALZ (D-MN1): “INAPPROPRIATEâ€
“Minnesota Reps. Tim Walz and Keith Ellison expressed similar concerns in interviews Thursday with the Associated Press. Ellison said the Franken article made him ‘uncomfortable,’ citing passages on oral sex and bestiality. Walz called the piece ‘pretty inappropriate.’†(Kevin Diaz and Conrad Wilson, “Franken’s porn story has party in a lather,†Star Tribune, May 30, 2008)
REP. BETTY McCOLLUM (D-MN4): “INDEFENSIBLEâ€
“Senate candidate Al Franken’s satirical and explicit take on virtual sex and other topics, published in Playboy magazine eight years ago, is drawing concern instead of laughter from some Minnesota Democrats. Rep. Betty McCollum, who supported the comedian’s rival Mike Ciresi until he dropped out of the race for the party’s nomination for the Senate, complained Thursday that she and other Minnesota Democrats will be on the same November ballot as a candidate ‘who has pornographic writings that are indefensible.’â€Â      (FREDERIC J. FROMMER, “Franken’s old Playboy article concerns Democrats,†Associated Press, May 30, 2008)
REP. BETTY McCOLLUM (D-MN4): “SHOCKINGâ€
“Senate candidate Al Franken’s satirical and explicit take on virtual sex and other topics, published in Playboy magazine eight years ago, is drawing concern instead of laughter from some Minnesota Democrats. Rep. Betty McCollum, who supported the comedian’s rival Mike Ciresi until he dropped out of the race for the party’s nomination for the Senate, complained Thursday that she and other Minnesota Democrats will be on the same November ballot as a candidate ‘who has pornographic writings that are indefensible.’ ‘Do they spend all of their time defending him, or do they spend their time talking about issues that are important to this election?’ McCollum told The Associated Press in an interview. ‘The whole story was a shocking surprise.’â€Â        (FREDERIC J. FROMMER, “Franken’s old Playboy article concerns Democrats,†Associated Press, May 30, 2008)
JERI RASMUSSEN, CO-FOUNDER OF THE DFL FEMINIST CAUCUS: “UNCOMFORTABLEâ€
“With his wit, national stature and ability to excite a crowd, Franken probably would win the DFL nomination, predicted Jeri Rasmussen of Shoreview, a co-founder of the DFL Feminist Caucus. ‘I think he could have Coleman on the run.’ Rasmussen added, however, that she was “a little uncomfortable with all his butt jokes.” (According to Franken, that’s where conservative talk-show host Rush Limbaugh pulls out his statistics.)†(Bill Salisbury, “Franken Visit Is DFL Lovefest,†Pioneer Press, July 8, 2004)
PRISCILLA LORD FARIS ON FRANKEN:
“No matter how many millions he spends, it is clear that his history of pornography, degrading women and minorities, and his questionable financial transactions will continue to be the focus.â€Â  (Priscilla Lord Faris ad, “Minnesota Values,†http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOvDVNEH6_g)
A Snapshot Of Al Franken’s Body Of Work
Franken Proposes SNL Skit Involving Drugging And Raping Lesley Stahl. “Franken: And, ‘I give the pills to Lesley Stahl. Then, when Lesley’s passed out, I take her to the closet and rape her.’ Or, ‘That’s why you never see Lesley until February.’ Or, ‘When she passes out, I put her in various positions and take pictures of her.’† (“Comedy Isn’t Funny: Saturday Night Live At Twenty—How The Show That Transformed TV Became A Grim Joke,†New York Magazine, March 13, 1995)
Franken’s “Porn-O-Rama†On Bestiality. “Since the advent of cable, an ever-accelerating technological revolution has given us an explosion of opportunities to enjoy pornography in our own homes. I’m talking, of course, about the Internet, which is a terrific learning tool. For example, a couple years ago, when he was 12, my son used the Internet for a sixth grade report on bestiality. Joe was able to download some effective visual aids, which the other students in his class just loved. See, at that age the kids are sponges!â€Â   (Al Franken, “Porn-O-Rama!†Playboy, January 1, 2000)
Franken’s “Porn-O-Rama†On Virtual Sex. “Then Dr. DeVine placed the Virtu-Screw helmet over my head. Sitting in the pitch dark, I felt slightly vulnerable but also excited. Sheasked me which setting I wanted. Since I’ve been married 23 years, Inaturally chose ‘blow job.’ My chair abruptly tilted backward, and I”felt” my pants being unzipped. If I hadn’t known I was sitting in the most state-of-the-art virtual reality sex machine, I would have sworn that a real woman’s hand had pulled my [expletive deleted] from my pants.â€Â     (Al Franken, “Porn-O-Rama!†Playboy, January 1, 2000)
Franken’s “Porn-O-Rama†On “Sexbots.†“The most current Sexbot prototype, Connie, while quite attractive, has moving parts made of plastic and metal alloys and is considered quite dangerous. In fact, as a futurist, Dr. DeVine believes that the first Sexbots to hit the market will result in class-action suits filed by severely injured men. That’s why Dr. DeVine urged me to forgo Connie and introduced me to Wilhelmina, a beautiful young German-born researcher who, while human, more closely approximates the Sexbot of the 22nd century. Wilhelmina escorted me to a private room with a bed and removed her clothes. If this is what Sexbots will look like a hundred years from now, I envy my great-great-grandsons. We made passionate love for two or three minutes before being joined by Dr. DeVine, who wanted to make the point that Sexbots will be used for threesomes. I could describe the incredible sex the three of us had, but this is a piece of journalism about the future of pornography and not one of those cheesy letters from a horny reader.â€Â      (Al Franken, “Porn-O-Rama!†Playboy, January 1, 2000)
Franken Joked About Woman Who Was “Vomiting” During Sex. Franken As Strom Thurmond: “Yeah, I screwed a girl who was vomiting once [laughter].” (“Al Franken Show,” Air America, October 18, 2006)
Franken’s Lengthy History Of Offending His Fellow Democrats
DSCC Chair Chuck Schumer: Franken Act “Was Over The Top.†“Comedian Al Franken launched such a strong attack on President Bush yesterday that even Sen. Chuck Schumer questioned whether he had gone too far. ‘Some of his stuff was over the top,’ Schumer conceded after Franken addressed the New York delegation. Removing all the stops, Franken mocked Bush’s intelligence, claimed the president and his aides ‘don’t even care’ about Americans dying in Iraq and said White House policies were being crafted by ‘crazy extremist ideologues.’ After noting that Bill Clinton had appeared on his radio show recently, Franken observed: ‘You forget a president can actually think and talk at the same time.’ Franken also said that while Bush had once said he was against nation building, ‘What I didn’t realize was that he meant only our nation.’†(Fredric U. Dicker and David Seifman, “Franken Slime Scary For Chuck,†New York Post, July 30, 2004)
Sources Report That All Five MN House DFLers Expressed Concerns Over “Porn-O-Rama.†“According to a state Democratic source, all five Democrats in the Minnesota Congressional delegation recently met and expressed serious concerns about Franken’s impact down-ballot on their Congressional campaigns. ‘There was unanimity that this was a problem for our House candidates in Minnesota — we’ve got three races here as well as other races down-ticket. The question that came up was how can our candidates stand with this guy?’ the Democratic operative told the Politico.â€Â  (Josh Kraushaar, “McCollum expresses concern about Franken candidacy,†Politico, May 29, 2008)
McCollum Told Franken “Porn-O-Rama†Is Radioactive. “McCollum said she spoke briefly with Franken on Thursday and that the candidate wanted to speak again. ‘I told him this is a serious problem,’ she said. ‘I told him my cell phone’s ringing off the hook. Union leaders call me, state House members are calling, I’ve had people in the coffee shop approach me, very concerned about this. They really feel this article is politically radioactive.’â€Â    (FREDERIC J. FROMMER, “Franken’s old Playboy article concerns Democrats,†Associated Press, May 30, 2008)
State Sen. Saltzman And Rep. Wollschlager Release Statement Critical Of Al Franken. “And Sen. Kathy Saltzman of Woodbury and Rep. Sandy Wollschlager of Cannon Falls both released a statement saying: [‘]As Minnesotans, we find the articles written by Mr. Franken to be most disturbing. While some may describe these writings to be satire, comedy, or an expression of free speech, we find them offensive and highly inappropriate when linked to a candidate for the United States Senate.  The standard for any party should be doing the people’s work and the prism through which candidates should be vetted and policies examined. While many still believe that Mr. Franken is a viable candidate for endorsement, we find it very difficult to see past these actions.[‘]â€Â   (Rachel Stassen- Berger, “Bad day for Al Franken,†Political Animal Blog http://blogs.twincities.com/politics/2008/06/bad_day_for_al_franken.html, June 5, 2008)
DFL Feminist Caucus President Resigned Over Franken Endorsement. “Mari Urness Pokornowski of Cokato, president of the DFL Feminist Caucus, resigned Saturday when she learned that her group had endorsed Franken. As a mother and former teacher, she said, she didn’t see how Franken’s writings represented rural Minnesota values. The endorsement, she said, ‘was a choice made by the caucus, and once that decision is made, you have to make a choice where you stand, For me, my decision was to step down.’â€Â    (Patricia Lopez and Kevin Duchschere, “Franken sweeps to endorsement,†Star Tribune, June 8, 2008)
State Sen. Tom Bakk Says Franken’s Past Is “Troubling.†“’He’s going to have a tough road ahead of him. I think (Republican U.S. Sen.) Norm Coleman’s done a pretty good job. Coleman will be hard to beat. I also don’t think there was enough adequate researching of Franken’s past done by the party. Some of the stuff is pretty troubling,’ Bakk said. He was referring to Franken’s tax problems, including non-payment of worker’s compensation taxes for several years until it was brought to his attention by New York State officials, and also past Saturday Night Live sketches, a Playboy article and Air America comments that degraded women and even made a joke of rape. The Cook senator said his thought process on endorsing Franken ‘… was a long time coming. He was not my first choice. And I deliberately waited until after the filings closed to see who else might be in the field.’â€Â      (Bill Hanna, “Tale of two political pats on the back,†Mesabi Daily News, July 26, 2008)
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23 Responses to “COLEMAN FOR U.S. SENATE PRESS RELEASE: “…AD FEATURES DEMOCRATS IN THEIR OWN WORDS SPEAKING OUT AGAINST AL FRANKEN’S WORK””
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August 12th, 2008 at 11:00 AM
HAHAHAHAHA.
So, should Franken start running an ad with Jack Shepard quotes?
This is quite possibly the dumbest ad ever.
August 12th, 2008 at 11:13 AM
Cogent analysis from quite possibly the dumbest Democrat in Plymouth.
I simply cannot understand why Aaron, PlyDem, Leroy and Yoni are so determined to prove beyond any and all doubt how utterly dim-witted they are.
Porn-O-Rama is a lost cause. People see these ads and are repulsed and sickened by your candidate. The more you and your ilk defend Franken, the more people will attach Franken’s repulsive reaction to you.
Norm Coleman will be returned for another term.
Those are the facts; live with it.
August 12th, 2008 at 11:17 AM
I thought the ad was going to quote a democrat?
Prissy has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that either she is a tottering old fool who doesn’t know what day it is, or she is a willing pawn of the republican party. Neither is of any value to the state’s democrats.
But I do like the tone of the ad. The longer Norm stays negative, the longer Al stays in the race. The fact that the incumbent has a single digit lead over a guy who has made all the missteps Al has, well, that proves that Norm’s campaign of negativity is doing nothing but keep Norm down.
August 12th, 2008 at 11:51 AM
Interesting tactic. I bet Franken doesn’t clear 70% in the primary…what a joke.
August 12th, 2008 at 11:51 AM
Interesting tactic. I bet Franken doesn’t clear 70% in the primary…what a joke.
August 12th, 2008 at 11:52 AM
Shameless.
August 12th, 2008 at 11:58 AM
i hate to agree with aaron, but this time i agree franken’s past statesments are shameless.
August 12th, 2008 at 12:05 PM
Aaron has been rendered virtually speechless.
classic.
August 12th, 2008 at 12:16 PM
A lot of die hard Dems I am friends with think Franken is a lost cause…. how wonderful.
Let’s all start placing bets on by how many points Franken will be defeated. I’d bet a hundred that he will lose by 12 points.
August 12th, 2008 at 12:20 PM
Yes, we Republicans SURE are sad you Democrats nominated Franken.
August 12th, 2008 at 2:28 PM
Cogent analysis from quite possibly the dumbest republiCon in St. Paul.
I simply cannot understand why Scrotee and ChinNuts are so determined to prove beyond any and all doubt how utterly dim-witted they are.
Smokescreen is a lost cause. People see these ads and are repulsed and sickened by your candidate. The more you and your ilk defend Smokescreen, the more people will attach Smokescreen’s hypcrisy to you.
Al Franken will be elected for a six year term.
Those are the facts; live with it.
August 12th, 2008 at 3:12 PM
Flounder,
Come on, all you can do is change a few words around. I guess you are speechless also?
August 12th, 2008 at 3:25 PM
I think MN is beginning to see that Franken is one giant fraud. Any news on the DFL frauds at the state capitol? They are, after all, only a few people away from a veto proof legislature.
August 12th, 2008 at 3:26 PM
Al Franken will be elected for a six year term.
Just say no to drugs, Tommy.
August 12th, 2008 at 3:29 PM
Al’s not good enough, Al’s not smart enough, and dog gone it, people just don’t LIKE him.
August 12th, 2008 at 3:46 PM
Rash, that demonsrated for those that pay attention (which obviously doesn’t include you) how (cheney)in’ easy it is to mimic the simple rhetoric Scrotee spews, when he’s not postin’ links to full-frontal male nudity here on MDE.
August 12th, 2008 at 4:47 PM
I love how the party of Mark Olson is sounding so confident despite the fact that months before the election, their incumbent candidate has only managed to build a single digit lead over a comedian who is bad at paperwork.
August 12th, 2008 at 6:21 PM
Thanks for the shout out Swiftee!
now for quotes from Norm’s primary opponent about Norm Coleman:
“During the Vietnam War NormColeman was a pot-smoking, hippe freak activist leader who refused to serve in the Vietnam War in accordance to U.S.Policies in the military, but now sends everyone to fight in the Iraq War.” (http://www.jackshepardforsenate.com/)
“Norm Coleman’s most famous quote, “’these conservative kids don’t f*** or get high like we do…” (http://www.jackshepardforsenate.com/)
“Norm Coleman in 1971 seen at Hofstra University NY; a pot-smoking hippie freak activist leader of the Students for a Democratic Society
[SDS] that helped take over buildings protesting the Vietnam War and lambasted our American Government who even dieted until his
Military Draft Board wrote he was too skinny to go Vietnam” (http://www.jackshepardforsenate.com/)
http://www.jackshepardforsenate.com/SDS.html
D Al’s not good enough, Al’s not smart enough, and dog gone it, people just don’t LIKE him.
wow now that was original.
August 12th, 2008 at 8:28 PM
Yoni,
What’s your point?
Norm grew up. Became a Republican.
Shame Al never did.
August 12th, 2008 at 8:37 PM
its the EXACT same tactic Norm’s campaign used for the video, so you know exactly what my point is.
August 13th, 2008 at 9:14 AM
Yeah Yoni, except the Coleman campaign isn’t quoting some drunk, indicted felon who’s hiding from the law while tossing bombs from Italy.
Fuck Jack Shepard. He’s nobody. Those featured in the Coleman ad are bona fide leaders of the Democrat Party.
August 13th, 2008 at 11:27 AM
If what Yoni says about colman is true that should get alot of crossover votes from the libs.
August 13th, 2008 at 8:29 PM
yeah Fuck Jack Shepard is right, he is a worthless piece of shit.