Salon recently spoke with Al Franken by phone as he prepped for an upcoming comedy festival in New York.

I'm going to give you a few names and I want you to tell me the first word that comes to mind.

Bill O'Reilly.

O'Reilly fucker.

Katherine Harris.

Conflict of interest.

Dick Morris.

Toe.

Jeb Bush.

Blockade.



Jesse Jackson.

Jew.

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Ralph Nader.

Former hero.

Fox News.

Also O'Reilly fucker.

By all accounts, George W. Bush has been a failure at everything he's ever done, from trading away Sammy Sosa to earning C's at Yale. Can you explain how someone like this gets elected?

Well, I mean his dad was president. That's something you have to remember. Bill Hillsman, the ad guy from Minnesota who did [Governor Jesse] Ventura's and [Senator Paul] Wellstone's ads, said that if he had been running the Democratic ads he would've used the line, "Here's a guy who couldn't find oil in Texas."

Does it disturb you that so many people would vote for someone simply because of their lineage?

I think it was the kind of thing where they felt safe. They wanted change, but a safe change. I guess they felt comfortable that even though G.W. didn't seem like someone who had a lot of experience or knew a lot, he would be surrounded by people who did.

Why do you think voters didn't feel comfortable with Vice President Gore after eight years?

I think Clinton fatigue was a real thing. It's just hard to get comfortable with Gore -- it was hard for him to project who he is, the person people know in private. People wanted a change in tone in Washington, even though Bush doesn't actually act on that. But that's what he was promising.

You've never been shy in your support of President Clinton. During the impeachment debacle, did your feelings toward him as a friend and a president ever waver?

Well, I find myself still defending him. For example, on the pardons -- people don't really give him credit for the pardons he didn't give. The Unabomber -- behind bars. Evidently, Charles Manson contacted Roger Clinton based on their mutual interest in music. I think the president showed good judgment in those cases.

What was your first reaction when you heard Florida had been taken away from Gore on Election Night? Did you think the fix was in?

I didn't think it was a fix. I had never heard of this so I was upset. I was very upset. [Laughs] It looked pretty good; it looked with Michigan, Pennsylvania and Florida that we had it. I couldn't believe it, and they did it again! It was unbelievable. I sort of blame Fox on the second one.

Last week, the police nabbed Jenna Bush on her second alcohol-related incident in a month. Does President Bush have an obligation to address this matter publicly, considering that he ran on a platform stressing a return to moral values and the betterment of child welfare?

Well, he didn't help himself during his Yale commencement address when he said he didn't remember a lot from his time there. He did a joke essentially saying, "I was drunk a lot." I think that was probably not the right joke to tell when your daughter is having these problems. I could see the joke about being a "C" student, but he should probably say something publicly like he doesn't approve of underage drinking or something. [Laughs] I think that's sort of the least he can do.

Considering the nature of their recent behavior, are the Bush girls fair game for the media now?

Well, I think that he is. I will point out that Chelsea Clinton, in the eight years her father was president, didn't get arrested once. The problem with Jenna is that it's been twice in four months. A third time -- it's three strikes and you're out in Texas -- and they'll have to execute her. Bad.

Over the years, your one-time bedfellow Arianna Huffington has become increasingly estranged from the Republican Party. Do you take any credit at all for her newfound love of liberalism?

I don't know if it coincided with the period in which Arianna got to know me or whether I had some influence. Either way she's now actually to my left. I saw it all happen, so it doesn't surprise me. Originally, when I first met her, she was a [Newt] Gingrich acolyte. In my first conversation with her, I tried to tell her that I didn't think Gingrich was a good guy. She liked him as a guy ... and I had little problem with him as a guy. Now, as it turned out, I was wrong. For example, I thought his speech at the last convention, "Adultery With a Purpose," was a great speech.

In the spirit of Sen. Jim Jeffords' defection, what would you say to convince another Republican to switch allegiances?

Actually, I think the Bushes are trying to get Jenna to switch.

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