Franken To Follow Hillary Clinton Route To Credibility?

So, Franken has finally won. Now comes the hard part: establishing credibility.

Here’s what he had to say about that yesterday to Minnesota Public Radio:

“There’s something in Hillary as a model for me, because Hillary, well she came in with a different kind of celebrity obviously. But there was a kind of skepticism where she had to prove herself a certain way and also prove not to be a kind of a show horse, but to be a work horse. And so I want to, you know, put my head down and get to work when I get there.”

Listen, there’s no doubt he has a much bigger hill to climb than most pols given the protracted court battle and his status as a celebrity. In fact, Fox News has already started a coordinated attack to discredit him. That’s not surprising, and I don’t think he should engage them, but Franken is a very easy target and he better get down to business once he hits D.C. or else he’ll quickly be a one-termer.

But here’s the thing…much like Clinton I think he’s actually going to be a good Senator. Maybe not a great one, but definitely a good one. Because while he definitely turned me off in recently years with his strident politics, I think he understands that he needs to put that aside and get down to the business of living up to the example his friend Paul Wellstone set. That’s going to be a much higher priority for him than scoring cheap, partisan points. At least that’s my hope.

Here’s the question: Will Franken find the lure of political celebrity irresistible or will he shut his mouth and get down to business?

(Photo: Getty via Daylife)