Sen. Al Franken should be tapped to be Hillary Clinton's vice presidential running mate, says Bill Scher, senior writer for the progressive political advocacy group Campaign for America's Future.
"For a 2016 presidential race that's already stranger than fiction, his party truly needs someone like Franken if it's going to win the presidency," Scher says of the Minnesota Democrat and former "Saturday Night Live" comic in a
column written for Politico.
"[Donald] Trump's presence demands new rhetorical weaponry. As Trump himself might say, Franken's 'classy' and 'elegant' wit is just what the ticket needs to avoid the kind of brawl that drags everyone down to Trump's level.
As well, writes Scher, it would allow Clinton to remain "above the fray," with the quick-witted Franken there to "provide the buffer."
"Franken has worked hard to prove he is a detail-oriented, issues-driven senator, not a political novelty act," Scher says.
"Furthermore, his style of humor is deadpan and wry, the perfect tonic to Trump's coarse broadsides. He'll have no need or inclination to get sucked into the gutter, the way Rubio did, just to get a piece of the daily news cycle."
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.