Comedian Runs For Senate, Seriously Folks

Al Franken won five Emmys for his work on "Saturday Night Live" over 16 seasons. He's funny (naturally), smart, passionate, principled and fiercely progressive. He had his own radio show on Air America. And he's now angling for a major role in Washington as the next Senator from Minnesota. No kidding. "George W. Bush and his pals have ignored the worsening health care crisis, shortchanged our veterans, and made mistake after mistake after tragic mistake in Iraq. They didn't do it because they were competing in some sort of international 'Worst Government' contest. They did it because they think the government is there to serve as a piggybank for their cronies. And, as a result, we find ourselves in need of real leadership to undo the damage they've done."

His web site lists several issues and his take on them. On health care: "We need to get to universal health care. A single-payer system clearly would save the most in administrative costs, but there are other ways to achieve universal coverage. Every other industrialized country in the world does have universal health care, but they don’t all use the traditional single-payer model. We should work together to develop an American model that reflects our culture and our history. While we’re working on that, there are things we can – and should – do immediately. For instance, we should cover every child in America right away. We should treat mental illness and addiction as the health issues they are and pass Paul Wellstone’s bill for mental health parity. And we should look for cures for deadly diseases by harnessing the full potential of stem cell research. "

Clearly the writer, actor, lecturer, TV and radio personality has a talent for politics. Will it be enough to win the Democratic primary and then defeat the incumbent, Senator Norm Coleman. Stay tuned.