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Franken launches women's campaign group
Democrat Al Franken joined a large group of female DFL leaders on the lawn of the State Capitol Wednesday to launch "Women for Franken," a special initiative geared to harnessing the power of his female backers. "We're here as women, as mothers and daughters and sisters, as professionals, but mostly as Minnesotans," Representative Erin Murphy of Saint Paul remarked, "We're with our friend Al and we're going to be with him every step of the way to make sure he's elected." State Auditor Rebecca Otto formally introduced Franken, who is trying to unseat the republican incumbent Senator Norm Coleman. "I want a Senator who understands the issues that are important to all women," Otto told the women who gathered in the garden which is a memorial to Minnesota's woman's suffrage movement. "He has met and spent much time with leaders of the women's community and we know he will be standing with us." Franken, thanked his wife Franni and daughter Thomasin for they're help on the campaign trail, and vowed to make women's issues a priority. "I want to stand with them not just on reproductive health, domestic violence and discrimination issues," Franken explained, "But on issues that affect every woman and indeed every Minnesotan trying to put a kid through college or pay for health care, trying to fill a car with gas or pay down credit card debt." The chairman of the Minnesota Republican party, Ron Carey, stood nearby during the event and told reporters afterwards that Franken is engaged in "damage control" because of how his past writings have offended women, including Democrats. "You can have as many news conferences on a nice sunny day as you like," Carey said, "But it doesn't change the fact that many Minnesota women, including many DFL women and DFL activists are realizing Al Franken's comments and behavior toward women are degrading." Carey pointed out that in May Congresswoman Betty McCollum, a Minnesota Democrat, called some of Franken's past work and newspaper quotes "radioactive" and "indefensible." "I think a lot of Democratic candidates are realizing that running with Al Franken is putting their own races in jeopardy," Carey quipped, "We'll see how many DFL candidates want to embrace Al Franken." Franken countered that he'd publicly apologized for comedy material he'd written and performed in the past that was inappropriate. And he asserted the fact he was endorsed on the first ballot of the DFL state convention is proof most Democrats accepted those apologies. "The delegates really got to know me," Franken told reporters as he looked straight at Carey, "And they also go to know Franni and Thomasin. They know we're a family, a real family that works together." Recent polling has hinted Franken doing better with likely female voters than with men, but trailing Norm Coleman overall.
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