Al Franken Draws ONE Participant to Vet Affair Roundtable

St. Cloud Times ^ | AUGUST 9, 2008 | LAWRENCE SCHUMACHER

[PittsburghAfterDark]

There’s an old saying in politics that elections are won or lost one vote at a time.

On Friday, DFL-endorsed U.S. Senate candidate Al Franken demonstrated how true that saying can be, when a roundtable on veterans issues at Brigitte’s Cafe his campaign scheduled drew only one participant.

Josh John, a St. Cloud resident who said he served in the Navy from 2000-04, had Franken to himself for an hour as he described difficulties he faced returning from his tour of duty and the help he received from his Veterans Services Office and the St. Cloud VA Medical Center.

[PittsburghAfterDark]

This had to be a painful exercise for Franken. One person for one hour. I would love to have been a fly on the wall after that considering there were undoubtedly more staffers, reporters, etc there than the HAR HAR one participant.

How livid must he have been at anyone involved in organizing this? Someone must have pictures but undoubtedly they won't publish this campaign fiasco.

http://www.sctimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080809/NEWS01/108080047/1009

Link to original article.

[Steely Tom]

How livid must he have been at anyone involved in organizing this? Someone must have pictures but undoubtedly they won't publish this campaign fiasco.

I think I've read somewhere that Mr. Franken can become rather irritable, even abusive, with those who annoy him.

Then again, I don't pay very much attention to him.

[Caipirabob]

I didn't see it mentioned in the article, but I heard here at FR that the single person who attended was a heckler! Can anyone confirm that? LOL!!!

[BigSkyFreeper]

I’m sure he would have had two attendees, but Garrison Keillor was at the state fair doing his Prairie Home Companion show, and couldn’t attend.

[Neil E. Wright]

ROFLMAO, found this on the replies to the SC article:

HOW TO START EACH DAY WITH A POSITIVE OUTLOOK

1. Open a new file in your computer.
2. Name it 'Barack Obama'.
3. Send it to the Recycle Bin.
4. Empty the Recycle Bin.
5. Your PC will ask you: 'Do you really want to get rid of 'Barack Obama?'
6. Firmly Click 'Yes.'
7. Feel better?

GOOD! - Tomorrow we'll do Al Franken

[trisham]

LOL!

[geezerwheezer]

Wonder when Franken will find out the joke is on him?

[ovrtaxt]

It would almost be worth showing up at one of these pathetic events as a constituent, with a hidden camera, and demanding limited government solutions to every problem. Just play stupid and undermine everything he has to say, see how long it takes him to go ballistic, then post the video on youtube.

Would be a great Freep...

[GeneralisimoFranciscoFranco]

But doggone it. He's good enough, he's smart enough, and, well, I guess people don't like him in real life.

So sorry, Stuart.

[iopscusa]

A FREEP on Stuart would have him snarlin’ like a rabid raccoon!

[ovrtaxt]

Where’s he running, in MN? Surely some good frozen Freeper could take on that assignment...

[iopscusa]

I do have a friend in MN but he is a Journalist that thinks GloBull Warming is the most critical issue evah, IOWs a useful tool!

[ovrtaxt]

Heck, if I lived in MN I’d be praying for global warming! People that live in the north are nuts.

[Past Your Eyes]

I guess they only needed a small table.

[stockstrader]

That’s one more veteran than I would have guessed he could have drawn....lol

[stevem]

Josh John, a St. Cloud resident who said he served in the Navy from 2000-04, had Franken to himself for an hour as he described difficulties he faced returning from his tour of duty and the help he received from his Veterans Services Office and the St. Cloud VA Medical Center.

If such a conversation ever really took place, it had to have been scripted.

[SandRat]

[Ben Reyes]

Al Franken is a joke, and he is not even funny.

[SlapHappyPappy]

I love that not only did he only draw one person, the guy’s initial negative reaction (essentially a personality clash with one clerk) has changed and he’s since had positive experiences with the VA.

I do believe much of the VA system needs work, but I also think certain issues are important enough that they should rise above being used for political gain.

I also think Franken was excited to have an audience bigger than what he got for his radio show.

[SlapHappyPappy]

Wonder when Franken will find out the joke is on him?

Since when does Al Franken know anything about humor?

[Bubba_Leroy]

It’s not fair to point to this one event. Why, at most events, Al pulls in crowds that are 2 or even 3 times as large as the crowd at this event.

[Lysandru]

Yesterday when out on errands, I saw a car with a "Veterans for Obama" bumper sticker.

What a putz.

[joma89]

Al Franken....he’s good enough, he’s smart enough, and dog gone-it, people like him! NOT!

JoMa

[dearolddad]

I guess they only needed a small table.

One attendee? Wasn't that the same number that listened to his radio show?

[Senator Goldwater]

One attendee? Wasn’t that the same number that listened to his radio show?

---

Actually it was one more than listened to his radio show.

[dearolddad]

Thanks!

I had always heard that Franken was going to replace El Rushbo.

[OCCASparky]

Strangely enough, a search of Military.com and DoD records shows no Minnesota Navy veteran with the name Josh John (or various spellings thereof).

Curiouser and curiouser.

[OCCASparky]

I saw a car with a "Veterans for Obama" bumper sticker.

And given that most places have minimum orders of at least 10 for bumper stickers, Obama could get one out to every veteran supporter and still have seven or eight left.