Former U.S. Sen. Al Franken, who told the New Yorker in July that he regretted resigning over sexual misconduct allegations, is taking more steps to raise his public profile.
Former Sen. Al Franken hits the speaking circuit
August 25, 2019 at 11:46AM
Tickets went on sale Friday for "An Evening with Al Franken" on Oct. 2 at Revolution Hall in Portland, Ore. Its website says the Minnesota Democrat is "delighted" to share behind-the-scenes details about his time on "Saturday Night Live" and in the Senate.
The best tickets are $89.50.
The former comedian earlier rolled out a website that includes his writings and a series of podcasts, many of them about serious policy issues but leavened by humor and profanity. He recently launched a YouTube channel.
Franken and New Yorker writer Jane Mayer both faced backlash over her story, which debunked some allegations made by Leeann Tweeden, his original accuser. Several other women made similar charges.
A Slate writer concluded that Mayer sometimes seemed "too eager to see Franken as a childlike innocent." New York Times columnist David Leonhardt said that, taken together, the charges "suggest that Franken behaved inappropriately."
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., a presidential candidate who called for Franken's resignation, wondered after the New Yorker piece why it "only seemed to delve into" one of the eight allegations.
Still, she told the Washington Post there's "a path for redemption" for Franken.
Judy Keen
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