Franken update

Rasmussen, a pretty shitty polling organization by most accounts, just released these MN Sen 08 numbers. Things not looking that good for ole Al. Losing in the trial heat (or "horse-race") by 10 points (46% to 36%, with an additional 10% saying they'd vote for a third party).

As correctly Rasmussen notes:

Generally speaking, incumbents who poll below 50% are considered potentially vulnerable.

True. However, Franken's favorables don't look too good right now: 39% favorable and 46% unfavorable. I am impressed that 85% of the survey had an opinion of Franken this far out actually, and would be interested in seeing the question ordering on the survey. If they ask the feelings thermometer after the trial heat, where they name the candidates, they bias the results because they give respondents that name and party identification of the candidate, something they might not have known before hearing the trial heat. Anyways, I am not suggesting Rasmussen did this, it just seems odd to me that 18 months away from an election 85% of those polled have formed an opinion on a challenger already. Then again, this is a guy who has been in the public eye for over 20 years now, so maybe it is a special case.

Domestique still withholds judgement on Franken as a candidate, although there is no question Norm fears him already. Check this out. It is a Star Tribune Big Question [politics blog] post about an intercepted fundraising letter sent out from Coleman's camp. I am going to copy and paste the passage from the letter that the Big Question posted, I'd do the whole thing if I had it, but perhaps unsurprisingly I do not receive too many GOP fundraising letters/emails (thank goodness). I'll just put this up and leave the analysis to the BQ blogger Eric Black, because I have nothing to add to his take, and if I just reiterate what he says in my own language, i think that is blog-plagiarism or something...

“Let’s talk politics for a moment because it’s as clear as a bell that I’m the National Democrats’ top target, comedian Al Franken is their likely nominee and with the Senate poised at a 51-49 majority, our success on Election Day is the key to Republicans reclaiming control in 2008.

Comic Franken is rich, glib, famous and nationally-connected. I take him very seriously.

He practices the cynical politics of hate that is petty, bitter, divisive, mean, vicious and cruel. While he lectures us on the conservatism he despises, he embraces an ultra-liberal philosophy that inevitably results in a pandemic of spending, taxing, borrowing and Big Government micromanaging.

Liberalism kills the goose that lays the golden eggs.

But Franken and other DFLers are considering running, too because they figure:

• Minnesota is a very liberal state.
• Amy Klobuchar won a landslide over Mark Kennedy.
• They think they can snap their fingers and defeat me in 2008.

Again, I think they’re missing the point and extracting the wrong lesson for the last election.

I think they’ve dismissed power of our conservative ideals and forgotten that I’ve been tested in close elections before.l They’re failing to recall the strength and intensity of our 87-county grassroots organization.

And most of all… They’re forgetting about good Minnesotans like you…