Posted on 03/11/2008 8:08:34 AM PDT by SmithL
MINNEAPOLIS— Al Franken's main competition for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate dropped out Monday, giving the comedian-turned-candidate a major boost.
Franken and lawyer Mike Ciresi were vying for the party's endorsement to take on Republican Sen. Norm Coleman in November. Coleman is seeking a second term.
Franken has raised millions more in campaign funds and lined up most of the important union endorsements, but Ciresi's impressive resume as a trial attorney and personal wealth positioned him as a potential spoiler to Franken's ambition.
Ciresi's statement that he was dropping out indicated he didn't think he could catch up to Franken's lead in rounding up the support of Democratic delegates, who will confer their endorsement at the state party convention in June. Both Franken and Ciresi vowed not to run in the primary election without the party endorsement.
"In my judgment, continuing the endorsement race would only lead to an unnecessary floor fight. It is time to step aside," Ciresi's statement said.
Franken issued a statement, praising Ciresi for a "well-fought campaign," citing his "passion for social justice, his command of the issues facing our nation, and his devotion to the people of Minnesota..."
Franken said he looked forward to working with Ciresi to make sure the party wins the seat.
In his statement, Ciresi didn't endorse Franken or the other major candidate, college professor and peace activist Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer.
Franken won't have to contend with Ciresi tapping into his own deep pockets to sway Democratic delegates. Ciresi recently loaned his own campaign $2 million, and he and campaign surrogates were growing more vocal about Franken's history of off-color jokes—arguing that Coleman and Republicans would be able to use them against Franken in the general election.
Nelson-Pallmeyer has also shown strength at local party meetings, and on Friday his campaign claimed it was ahead of Ciresi in securing commitments from Democratic delegates. Nelson-Pallmeyer has also vowed to abide by the party's convention endorsement.
"This sets up a clear contrast between me and Al Franken, and that helps my campaign," Nelson-Pallmeyer said, predicting that most Ciresi supporters would gravitate his way.
Ciresi is best known as the chief litigator in the state of Minnesota's successful 1998 lawsuit against Big Tobacco, one of numerous multimillion-dollar settlements and awards under his belt.
Heavan help us if a guy like Franken gets elected.
Hey,Al,you’re *not* good enough and people *don’t* like you.You talentless........
We have to remember that Coleman’s win was something of a fluke originally. The backlash from the tasteless Wellstone funeral orations carried him into office, but he’s going to need some help to stay there.
Has he been a good senator?
Al Franken, you know he moved back to Minnesota. He wanted to run for the U.S. Senate. Now, here's a guy who hates big companies. He hates these evil conservatives who just want to screw the little guy. "We need giant government to be able to take care of all of the poor little workers that are being screwed," right? He goes back to run for the U.S. Senate in Minnesota. He leaves New York. It's weird what a coincidence this was. He left in New York as the New York state workers' compensation board, fined his personal corporation $25,000 for failing to pay workmen's comp premiums from June 2002 to March 2005. He apparently wasn't paying his workmen's comp premiums during that time period for the little people and so they fined him, which is weird because it happened at the same time, you know, right before he left New York.Now, he said at first he was going to investigate the judgment, "I'm going to investigate what happened. Pretty clear once I didn't pay workmen's comp premiums." Now because he's running for Senate he immediately changed that to say, "Well, I didn't even know about it. I didn't even know about it until it was reported in a paper and then I found out about it and I'm going to"... let me ask you this: What would this guy be saying if I didn't pay my workmen's comp premiums for five years?
Beck specializes in verbally devastating his enemies, skewering on the spit of his wit...when they are not present to reply.
In my opinion he has been a good senator, certainly a lot better than Paul Wellstone, and as good as one could conceivably hope for from a very liberal state like Minnesota.
Franken was a lousy commedian, but he’d make a great marxist Senator. He can join the ranks of the senate and feel at home as it has become larded with leftist, America-hating rats who want to make this nation into something that resembles Zimbabwe.
Every time I hear a liberal like Franken talk about "social justice", I am reminded that to me, social justice means equality. To him, it means revenge.
Not quite a RINO but certainly a moderate.
I won’t have to swallow too hard to vote for him.
And Franken won some of Ben Stein’s money. I hope they never make up a presidential ticket.
How bad could it be? It's not like a pro wrestler got elec...oh wait...
That was govenor...
So a comedian as Senator would be nothing out of the ordinary for Minnesota.
This is good. Even in Minnesota having Barack McGovern Obama at the top of the ticket and the very unfunny al franken next up will be too much. We have not lost Minnesota by much the last few times. This will be all that will be needed to push it over to Red.
I don’t think Franken can shut his left wing mouth more than two minutes before he’ll say something at a debate that will make most of the audience wanting to pinch his face.
Norm should whip Al’s @$$.
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