I was at a political kick off for the union I belong to and they had al fraken attend and we had a little meet and greet. It was interesting when me and my friend pat(think 6'2 biker 235lbs ponytail) brought up the issue of guns. He was a typical politician trying to dance around the topic of assualt weapons. Then I said rather frankly (pun intended) let me ask you this would you be friends with diane and charles? He said we could be friends and not agree on all issues. I cant be friends with sworn enemies like diane and chuck.

Good for calling him out on it.

Diane Feinstein and Chuck...who?

Feinstein and Boxer should be deported to the Soviet Union (yeah, I know that no longer exists, but that's where they would fit in the best).

Those two are among the many reasons I left Californicate to return to Minnesota.

whoever gets elected in 2008 (right or left) will re-up the assault weapons ban. buy now before the prices go up.

Chuck Schumer, the senior, virulent anti-gun senator from NY

I've talked to Al a number of times, and I would take that statement as reflecting the "necessary evil" that our government has become. I'd love to see politicians viewing other people as friend or enemy, but the bureaucracy won't allow for it. It's turned into a "chicken or the egg" question. The politicians created the bureaucracy, but now the bureaucrats run the actual workings of the government.

-Mark

He can be friends when it suits him. That answers nothing. Did you get a promise to not vote for bills that restrict our 2A rights? No! He danced around the issue. Vote for someone else no matter what he promises your union.

The current crop of Republicans are no better. I have a personal dislike of Norm, so he's off my list. Doesn't leave a lot of options.

-Mark

Sometimes you truly have to pick the lesser of two evils no matter what. Franken has no redeeming qualities that I can see. I don’t even like his humor and that is what his main occupation is. Norm has faults, big ones I will grant you, but people like Franken will be the ruination of this country.

Oh me and the union rarely see eye to eye on who to vote for. Although I will vote for norm again as he is clearly the lesser of the two evils.And the union does also support him. We dont just support dfl we support those who support us. It was funny though Kyle who is our political director said" After where done I am sure Jeff would like to talk to all of you about guns." We all had a laugh and he was right I did.

I agree with picking the lesser. Due to some personal experiences with Norm, for me he is the greater evil. I'm not saying Al is the answer, but I'm looking for alternatives. I wouldn't try to force my view on anyone, because our experiences would lead to different conclusions.

Rant on...

I majored in Political Science with an emphasis in Constitutional Law and another in Political Philosophy. When did our country's political process go from choosing leaders we truly believed in to picking the lesser of two evils? I can't believe that this is what the framers of the Constitution had in mind.

Rant off...

-Mark

What the framers had in mind was that the many different centers of power they had created would so hamstring each other that it really wouldn't matter who was elected, since nothing they did would have much impact on your life.

Our next Senator? NOT!

That is what it has turned into. Which is sometimes good and sometimes bad. Grid lock would be good and eliminate ear marks to gain control over spending.