March/April 2008
Al Franken. Seriously.
The SNL scribe toiled in the trenches of late-night comedy until he became the Democrats’ answer to right-wing media. Now Al Franken wants not just your laughter, but also your vote. Why is this man running?.
When it comes to politics, Franken has always been funny. But his humor is increasingly fueled by outrage."
High-school teacher Roy Magnuson’s house sits at the far end of a triangle of crusted snow in residential St. Paul, its steamy glass storm door an inviting beacon on a frigid January night. College kids stand on the lawn bobbing “Al Franken: Democrat for U.S. Senate” placards. Indoors, the man of the hour works an overflow crowd of several hundred. The cackling “heh-heh-heh,” so familiar from Franken’s years on television and radio, gives away his precise location as he chats up a husband and wife. When they identify themselves as psychology professors, Franken barks, “Maslow!,” an impromptu reference to the 20th-century psychologist. Spying a reporter, he adds, “I’ve just insulted them. I’m not slick at this!”
To cheers and applause, Franken, decked out in a crisp blue suit, ascends the makeshift stage—a coffee table strewn with a half-eaten bounty of cookies, potato chips, sour cream dip, Triscuits, and crudités. A baby squalls. Make-up-free women and men in sensible Ecuadoran knits sip Miller High Life and Dr Pepper.
From his perch, Franken thanks “Ray,” his host. “It’s Roy!” someone shouts. Roy Magnuson, a longtime leader in the St. Paul Federation of Teachers, has been a great resource, Franken hastens to say. With the help of people like Roy, Franken is sure he can beat Republican incumbent Norm Coleman in Minnesota’s 2008 Senate race. Then, before launching into his stump issues—more health care for children, more federal aid to college students, more renewable energy, fewer Americans in Iraq—Franken recalls when he started to get serious about politics.
“After I left Saturday Night Live, the [Newt] Gingrich revolution was ascendant,” he says. “It was 1995, and [Republicans] were trying to unravel the social safety net. And I took it personally—my family did. When my wife was 17 months old, her father died in a car accident coming home from his shift at the paper factory, leaving his widow at 29 with five kids. But they made it. They made it because of Social Security survivor benefits.” It is a powerful moment, particularly because the wife in question, Franni Franken, sits on a nearby couch.
Magazine
Most Popular:
More Like This
- Content
-
Features
When Harvard Met Hollywood -
Features
Crimson Tide -
Features
Harvard Boulevard -
Spotlight
Combating elitism -
Spotlight
George W. Bush
The Rankings:
Subscribe to 02138
Your privacy is ensured. We never sell, disclose, or trade contact information.
02138 is an independent magazine and is not affiliated with Harvard University. Please note that 02138 is available to the general public by subscription only, but is not automatically mailed to all Harvard alumni.