Senator Al Franken seeking to make a point fails miserably.

SMOKING FRANKEN

Minnesota Senator Al Franken wants so badly to count for something. As a United States Senator he is a powerful man, but Harry Reid stripped some of the power from the minority that Franken and his Democratic colleagues now occupy. Like most of his other of his Democratic colleagues, Franken flails away as he seeks to lead the cranky opposition to Trump in the Senate. 

As a humorist, Franken was profoundly unfunny. As a politician, he is profoundly unserious. He is a pretext in search of an argument.

Franken vividly illustrated his project such as it is in the course of his examination of Rep. Tom Price in the hearing on Price’s confirmation as Secretary of HHS. Unlike Franken, Price is incredibly well qualified for the position and is a man on a constructive mission. 

Although Franken is a former humorist, he remains a buffoon. The comic relief Franken provided in the hearing (video below) was therefore inadvertent.

 

 

Seeking to condemn Price for his investment in a tobacco stock, Franken found he had drawn deeply on an exploding cigar he had placed in his own mouth.