Al Franken is currently attempting to present to the general public the image of someone who is willing to forge alliances with Republican senators as well as avoiding controversy by engaging in sweet corn filibusters when answering campaign questions. It is all part of his campaign strategy, along with declining to schedule debates with his opponent, to run out the clock to election day.
However, when he thinks he can get away with it, Franken will pull out the race card and basically accuse Republicans of racism for supposedly wanting to suppress the vote of "certain Americans" as you can see at the 3:07 mark (and after the jump) in this Hmong TV video. In stark contrast to the genial and confident Franken which is being presented out in public, in the video he is bitterly divisive with an undertone of desperation:
Let me tell you about getting out the vote. Now Republicans don't want you to get out the vote. They don't want Americans, they don't want certain Americans to vote. We had five conservative Supreme Court justices overturn the Voting Rights Act. Now this is an activist court. This is a conservative activist court. One hundred senators voted for the Voting Rights Act the last time it was passed. They overturned it and right away and right away states like North Carolina and Texas started going after people of color. They don't want you to vote. The vote is precious. So I need you to make sure that your friends register. That your friends get out to vote. We lose people in the midterms. A lot of our people vote in the presidentials and then don't vote in the midterms. And that's what happened in 2010. And that's why we had a government shutdown here in Minnesota and that's why we had a government shutdown in Washington. It is absolutely crucial that you turn people out to vote. Now the election is 68 days away. Now I know that many of you have jobs. Many of you have families. Ignore them.
And now here is the note of desperation from Franken:
Listen, seriously. I won by 312 votes. I won by 312 votes in the best year that the Democrats had in a generation....
So, Senator, why are you shamelessly playing the race card and accusing Republicans of suppressing the vote of "certain Americans?"
Hey, let me tell you about this sweet corn. It is so delicious that you can't stop at just one ear. And when you're done stuffing yourself with the sweet corn, try the walleye on a stick. Dripping with great taste. Then top it all off with chocolate chip cookies floating in a bottomless glass of ice cold milk and.....
