Funnyman Franken Raises Serious Dough for Senate Run
April 19, 2007 — -- A surprising campaign for a surprising candidate only makes sense: Al Franken wouldn't have it any other way.
The former "Air America" radio talk show host and "Saturday Night Live" comedian announced his candidacy for Minnesota's Senate seat on Valentine's Day and the last two months of fundraising have been pretty sweet.
The Franken campaign announced this week that it had raised more than $1.3 million during the first quarter of 2007, thanks in part to star-studded fundraisers in California.
Franken Gets Serious
The campaign said it was "thrilled" to have raised such a large sum in only 45 days, nearly matching the $1.5 million haul of incumbent Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn.
"Franken is doing very well," said University of Minnesota political science professor Larry Jacobs. "For an incumbent to be tied with a challenger [in terms of fundraising], it is very unusual."
Last month, an event at the Los Angeles home of "Seinfeld" creator Larry David and his wife, Laurie, a producer of the Al Gore inspired "An Inconvenient Truth," raised more than $200,000 for the campaign.
The event included a guest appearance by Franken's friend and Academy Award-winning actor Tom Hanks and a donation from legendary screen star Paul Newman.
Coleman's camp said they were pleased with their earnings.
"We're thrilled with the amount of support we have and excited that we're off to a great start," Coleman's campaign manager Cullen Sheehan told ABC News. "The first quarter results were a sign that people are pleased with the job that the Senator is doing."
Sheehan emphasized that while Franken is getting high-profile donations from Hollywood stars, Coleman garnered a great deal of support in Minnesota.
"73% of our contributions came from Minnesotans," said Sheehan. "[Franken] raised a lot of money from his network of friends in Hollywood and New York, but people respect the leadership that the Senator provides on issues like health care, agriculture, and transportation. Our fundraising success and grass-roots success indicates that."
However, there may be some cause for concern in the Coleman camp, Jacobs says.
"[Voters] see Coleman as vulnerable and they are willing to put their money where their mouth is. One thing that incumbents try to do is raise enough money early on to scare off challengers, but Coleman has been unable to do that. It's going to be a challenge for him."
No Laughing Matter
Republicans wasted no time using Franken's comedic past against him.
Even before Franken formally had announced his candidacy, the National Republican Senatorial Committee had released a collection of Franken quotes, including a 2003 comment in Time magazine where Franken denied any temptation to run for office, saying, "If I took one vote away from a serious candidate, it would be a sin."
Ron Carey, chairman of the Minnesota Republican Party, also issued a statement expressing confidence that the state "will reject Franken's divisive, scorched earth attacks," also declaring that "Al Franken fundamentally lacks the leadership qualities Minnesotans are looking for."
Jacobs acknowledges that Franken has to overcome some of these past comments.
"The issue is whether this campaign will be a referendum on the incumbent or on the challenger," Jacobs said. "The question on most Democrats' minds in Minnesota is whether [Franken's] past comments and the way he's perceived here will make him the issue. Some of his comments are appropriate for a comedy club but definitely not for a politician."
Republicans aren't the only ones trying to derail a Franken bid before it gets too serious.
Democrat Mike Ciresi, a wealthy trial lawyer known for winning a large settlement against the tobacco industry, formally announced his candidacy Wednesday.
"It's a big mistake nationally to assume that Franken will get the Minnesota nomination," Jacobs said. "It will be quite a competition and Franken will have his hands full."