Al Franken's Curious Accountability Demands

'BLANK'-EN FRANKEN

Does Stuart Really Believe He'll Get Away With This?





*** Lieberman Defends Coleman's Oversight Record ***


There are nervy, brazen and obnoxious people in this crazy world and then there is Al Franken, truly one of a kind. While he may not win November's senate election in Minnesota, this alleged comedian could easily score a top prize as the most shameless hypocrite on the campaign trail.

At this point, however, Franken himself may not be the biggest problem. For letting him get away with these dishonest antics, fingers ought to be pointing at the rest of us. After all, ol' Stuart Smalley's simply staying true to character.

As he dares to criticize Norm Coleman for his supposed lack of "accountability" while chairing a Senate oversight committee, can we really remain silent? Where was this zeal for ethics and morality when his employer, Air America Radio, was looting a children's charity to fund staff salaries?

From the Minneapolis Star-Tribune:

From 2003 to 2007, Coleman was chairman of the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (PSI). Coleman led several probes as chairman, including music pirating on the Internet, Pentagon travel abuses and abuses in the United Nations' oil-for-food program.

But Franken said Coleman held no hearings on waste and fraud during the war at "the bidding of the White House."

Coleman "let our country down. We paid a steep price. Now it falls to the people of Minnesota to hold him accountable," Franken said.

Coleman campaign officials responded that the PSI has uncovered more than $70 billion in payroll tax abuses, Medicare fraud and unpaid contractor taxes since Coleman joined the committee.

"Al Franken would rather have him doing things that were being done by other committees ... that were better equipped to handle this," said campaign spokesman Luke Friedrich.

And from KARE-TV 11, Franken parrots his party's talking points, with unintentionally funny results (perhaps he's a comedian after all):

Meanwhile, DFL Senate candidate Al Franken says Congress should not give the Bush administration a "blank check" as it considers a $700 billion plan to bail out the financial industry. Franken says any plan should include independent oversight by Congress.

He also says that taxpayers should get an equity stake in companies that are being bailed out. Like other Democrats in Congress, Franken says that CEOs of such companies should not receive excessive salaries. And the candidate is calling for a freeze of home foreclosures. Franken is challenging Senator Norm Coleman, a Minnesota Republican.

While he made greedy salary demands of a radio network that was using siphoned charity money to make payroll, where was the accountability? And isn't that "blank check" concept strangely reminiscent of his own Air America deal?

Where has Al Franken ever set the example that he would compel others to follow?






This factually- correct ad, created by the Coleman campaign, ought to be required viewing for every Minnesota voter.

Are we really going to let Al Franken get away with this stunningly hypocritical campaign approach, or instead use the opportunity to shout from the rooftops that this guy is as dirty as they come?


FOR New England regional talk radio updates, see our other site.


Amazon orders originating with clicks here benefit The Radio Equalizer's ongoing operations.

Your Honor System contributions keep this site humming along. Thanks!


Technorati tags: talk radio al franken campaign air america radio norm coleman campaign al franken accountability franken blank check air america charity theft scandal