Cart Before The Horse: Al Franken Should Be Hillary's VP
It is completely premature and ridiculous to pontificate about who is going to be the 2016 Democratic Presidential nominee. But it is fun, premature and ridiculous to pontificate about who should be Hillary Clinton's running mate when she wins the nomination. For me, there is one clear choice: Al Franken. A Vice Presidential nominee has five jobs:
Campaign Attack Dog;
Help In Battleground State(s);
Fundraising in key constituencies;
Win the VP Debate; and
Be a plausible replacement for the President.
Al Franken bats five-for-five. He uses the same political consultant - Mandy Grunwald - who headed the 2008 Clinton campaign. It's a great fit.
Al Franken Would Be The Best Campaign Attack Dog
The Presidential and VP candidates play "good cop - bad cop" during the campaign. Americans lap up negative campaigns, but they hate negative campaigners. The solution is that the Presidential candidate espouses the positive vision for the campaign, while the VP candidate makes the harsh attacks on the opponent. In particular, Hillary Clinton will need to avoid articulating attacks on her opponent. With a lot of help from the "vast right wing conspiracy", she has been tarred as a castrating vampire mean girl. During the 2008 campaign against Barrack Obama, the press seriously debated whether Hillary Clinton was "likable" - leading to Barrack Obama's infamous "you're likable enough." In a recent poll, 36% of the public agreed that Hillary Clinton was "hard to like." The unfair sexist reality is that Hillary Clinton will need to outsource her attacks.
Al Franken has been practicing for this job for forty years. He honed his political satire as a writer and performer on Saturday Night Live for over a decade. His books "Rush Limbaugh Is A Big Fat Idiot" and "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them" were best-selling humorous attacks on the Right. He built his brand on infuriating Republicans. He has the courage to make any attack and the experience to select the zingers.
Franken has celebrated the role of the attack dog. In "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them", he wrote, "Our attack dogs are a bunch of scrawny, underfed mutts that spend half the time chasing their own tails and sniffing each other's butts." During his 2008 Senate campaign, Al Franken demonstrated that he was no scrawny mutt. He ran ads that accused his opponent, Senator Norm Coleman, of taking trips paid for by lobbyists, accepting money from drug companies and the oil industry, living "almost rent-free in a million dollar home of a Washington insider."
Al Franken Would Help Carry Minnesota And The Upper Midwest
Al Franken has built upon his popularity in Minnesota since squeaking into the Senate by 312 votes in 2008. A recent poll found he had a 55% job approval rating, with 97 percent of Minnesota Democrats approving of him. He is currently running for re-election to the Senate, but has not drawn any serious opposition. He has built a strong grassroots organization in Minnesota, with more than 30 full-time staffers and thousands of volunteers. He has raised millions of dollars and will blanket Minnesota with ads this year. Those ads will bleed into neighboring Iowa and Wisconsin, helping to build his popularity and name recognition. The Upper Midwest will likely be a major battleground in the 2016 election, just as it was in 2012. If Clinton/Franken wins Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan and Wisconsin, it is nearly impossible to put together a winning map for the Republican candidate. Even if a Republican candidate won Ohio, Florida and Virginia, Clinton/Franken would still prevail.
Al Franken Would Be A Great Fundraiser
Al Franken has already proven to be a great fundraiser. For his 2008 Senate campaign, Franken raised over $20 million, more than any other candidate facing an incumbent.
Al Franken would be a great fundraiser in two core Democratic constituencies: the entertainment industry and Jews. His Hollywood friends, such as Amy Poehler, Conan O'Brian and Jon Hamm, have hosted fundraisers for him. Lorne Michaels - king of SNL - has contributed to his campaigns.
If elected, Al Franken would the first Jewish Vice President. He is long-standing supporter of Israel. He frequently refers to his Jewish upbringing in campaign speeches.
Al Franken Would Win The VP Debate
As Sarah Palin proved, a Vice Presidential candidate must be able to survive the Vice Presidential debate. Al Franken would not only survive, he would thrive. He literally wrote many of the mock debates that appeared on Saturday Night Live. He faced off against right-wing talking heads like Bill O'Reilly and Ann Coulter long before he entered politics as a candidate. He trounced Norm Coleman during their five debates in the 2008 Minnesota Senate race.
Al Franken Would Be A Plausible Replacement
After his election to the Senate, Al Franken followed Hillary Clinton's playbook to become a respected authority on the issues. Even his Republican colleagues have complimented his performance.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said Franken respects the institution: “Given the reputation he had, he has been very effective in dispelling the belief that some may have had that he was unserious.” “He’s surprised me,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). “He’s taken very seriously doing the work of a senator, but he’s had to do it because of the reputation he had as a comedian. I think he’s shown he’s a senator and not a comedian.”
It turns out that Al Franken was premature when he dubbed the 1980s the "Al Franken Decade". He should be the next Vice President of the United States.