Al Franken, D-Minn.
Al Franken presents the “ditch” speech
The Minnesota senator and former comedian performs his interpretation of the Democratic Party's closing argument
Al Franken Sen. Al Franken stopped being funny once he began his campaign for the U.S. Senate, but since taking office he has, every now and then, allowed himself to crack a joke. At a Mark Dayton rally in Minnesota recently, he performed his own version of Barack Obama’s now-tiresome “ditch” routine. His lengthier, funnier version.
The danger of this sort of thing is that because Franken is a former professional satirist, this basically sounds like he is mocking the president’s (and the party’s) message:
Seriously, add one or two more laugh lines and this is superior to every single “Saturday Night Live” political cold open of the last two years.
(The full speech/routine is here.)
Alex Pareene writes about politics for Salon and is the author of "The Rude Guide to Mitt." Email him at apareene@salon.com and follow him on Twitter @pareene More Alex Pareene.
