WATCH: Al Franken Dishes On Which Senators Are Funny

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By Daniel J. Solomon August 2, 2017

Al Franken is touching base with his old days as a comedian with the publication of his new book “Giant of the Senate.” And the Minnesota Senate Democrat isn’t holding back when it comes to assessing the humor of his colleagues.

Franken recalled how he once told South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham that he would vote for him if he were a Republican. “Without hesitation he said, ‘That’s my problem,’ Franken recounted to Stephen Colbert on Monday’s “Late Show,” describing Graham as “very funny.”

But some didn’t get his jokes, like ex-Oklahoma senator Tom Coburn. “[Coburn] will admit that he doesn’t have a very good sense of humor so the first three or four interactions we had, we just kind of missed,” Franken said.

Franken also defended previous books that mocked right-wing pundits, including ex-Fox News personality Bill O’Reilly and talk radio host Rush Limbaugh. “I made fun of the people who deserved it, so Newt Gingrich, I made fun of Rush Limbaugh, and Bill O’Reilly at Fox,” he said.

Franken, a “Saturday Night Live” alum turned politician, has been busy promoting his new book. He was profiled in the Forward’s July magazine.

Contact Daniel J. Solomon at [email protected] or on Twitter @DanielJSolomon

Daniel J. Solomon is the former Assistant to the Editor/News Writer at the Forward. Originally from Queens, he attended Harvard as an undergraduate, where he wrote his senior thesis on French-Jewish intellectual history. He is excited to have returned to New York after his time in Massachusetts. Daniel’s passions include folk music, cycling, and pointed argument.