Democrat

Franken’s rival drops out, clearing way to nomination

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Aaron Blake reports that attorney Mike Ciresi announced Monday that he is dropping out of the race for Sen. Norm Coleman’s (R-Minn.) seat, clearing the way for comedian Al Franken in the Democratic contest.

“In my judgment, continuing the endorsement race would only lead to an unnecessary floor fight. It is time to step aside,” Ciresi said in a statement.

Franken still faces a delegate contest with Professor Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer, but the peace activist has not raised the kind of money Franken and Ciresi have and will be a significant underdog.

All candidates had agreed to abide by the party convention’s endorsement and not run in a primary. But speculation had been growing that Ciresi, who was struggling with delegates, would decide to pursue the primary as he did in his 2000 race for the state’s other Senate seat.

He lost to Mark Dayton (D), who went on to serve one term.

Ciresi, who made his fortune suing Big Tobacco, saw his fundraising slow in recent months and was forced to pump his personal funds into the race, with Franken raising $7 million in 2007. Ciresi self-funded $2.5 million before backing out of the race.

Al Gore: The 2008 Election Wild Card

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The polls as we speak have painted a picture of a “horse race” that has been etched into the minds of all Americans. The leaders are Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton. Coming in closely behind are John Edwards and Bill Richardson. Chris Dodd, Joe Biden, and Dennis Kucinich trail behind the leaders significantly. And Mike Gravel is unfortunately that angry old man, a curmudgeon, who we have all grown to laugh at as he continues to hang in the race despite his 0% registered support. BUT – there is one catch, however…

Gore does not just play out as a factor in the polls. Right now, he also stands to benefit any of the Democratic candidates greatly. There are many implications, but whoever Al Gore comes out speaking in favor of or “endorsing”, which is what it will be referred to as even if it is not formal endorsement, will see a boost in their poll numbers immediately. Should Gore stand up and say explicitly, “I do not plan to run and instead, I support this Democratic candidate to run”, than supporters of organizations like Draft Gore in 2008 will dissolve, followers of Gore and members of Draft Gore will move to the “next best candidate”, or each one of those followers will examine each candidate and decide who to vote for, which may even lead to many voting for a third party candidate.

Something to take note of is the fact that Al Gore supporters are looking at this race from the outside and critiquing all candidates from the “minor” candidates to the “major” candidates. Primarily, they are examining policies of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. Many are more than likely in fact examining John Edwards and Bill Richardson also. Supporters are taking each of those stances on the issues and each proposed policies and comparing them to Gore so that they can better promote a Gore campaign. And as they come to dislike those candidates more and more and become more hooked on a possible Al Gore run, what happens when he doesn’t run? Do they choose the lesser of two evils and go for a popular major candidate? Or do they vote their conscience and go for a candidate like Dennis Kucinich?

Bottom line: Even after Labor Day, Al Gore is still on the minds of Democrats. He just seems like the guy who should be cleaning up the mess George W. Bush made. And so, some Americans wait and wonder if he will run or who he will endorse. Thus, the deciding factor of this election may not be special interests, corporate interests, or the amount of money one raises. It could be whether Al Gore likes what candidates bring to the table or not. And if that’s so, based on what each Democratic candidate brings, Gore will decide who deserves to lead America into a new and brighter day.