Breaking News: someone mentioned Keith Olbermann on television! This was a major development in the Olbersphere today, and Olbermann, via his Twitter account, snapped at the opportunity like a fry near the surface of the ocean tempted by the most alluring chum the anglers above could offer. Today the inadvertent target was Fox & Friends‘ Gretchen Carlson, who noted that she had been on the “Power Players” edition of Jeopardy! with Olbermann. For her high insolence, Olbermann tweeted, “that’s why they let her into Final Jeopardy as a Mercy Play.”

Earlier today, we reported on The Daily Caller‘s publication of a script for a Saturday Night Live sketch that was scratched from this weekend’s show, a post that carried the heavy implication that the decision was politically motivated. Since then, we’ve contacted the writer of that sketch, Jim Downey, who tells us that he actually sent the script to Daily Caller publisher Tucker Carlson prior to Saturday’s show, and insists there were no politics behind the decision to scratch the bit.

Minnesota Democratic Senator Al Franken burst into tears on the Senate floor during a speech about the Violence Against Women Act Thursday while recalling his friend, former Senator Paul Wellstone who died in a plane crash in 2002.

Say what you will about Sen. Al Franken‘s politics — and people tend to either love or hate the Democrat from Minnesota — but his idea for the Senate’s first-ever Secret Santa gift exchange turned out to be a winner. Organized with the help of Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.), the Secret Santa exchange attracted 39 Democrats and 22 Republicans, with the hopes of fostering some across-the-aisle goodwill and cheer. It seemed, at least momentarily, to work.

During an appearance on a panel at the University of Pennsylvania on Tuesday, Vice President Joe Biden defended President Obama’s Jobs Act by explaining that the money injected into the economy would be used to increase police and teacher forces across the country, among other jobs. According to The Daily Pennsylvanian, Biden said that temporary cuts in police and education staffing aren’t something to be taken lightly:

Yesterday, Minnesota Senator Al Franken (D) addressed fellow members of the Senate with the help of a rather striking visual aid.

While explaining to his fellow politicians that, if a bill to increase the debt ceiling isn’t passed by the August 2nd deadline, there would be no money for veterans, students or federal agents fighting terrorism, Franken elected to really drive his point home by unveiling a large blue and yellow sign reading “WELCOME TERRORISTS.” We think we saw a welcome mat with that same inscription in a Sky Mall catalogue.

During a Senate hearing on the repeal of The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), Minnesota Senator Al Franken (D) addressed written testimony by Tom Minnery, the executive director of Focus on the Family’s CitizenLink, where, according to his professional bio, he acts “as a steady voice articulating the conservative Christian viewpoint on family, marriage and religious civil liberties issues. His views and influence have helped to shape public policy at both the national and state levels.”

Senator Franken seemed to feel Minnery was not being completely honest or forthright regarding certain aspects of his testimony or, perhaps, that he was interpreting certain terms incorrectly or in a biased manner.

It would appear that a rather unexpected friendship has bloomed in our nation’s capital: Sen. Al Franken, a member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, has found something of a kindred spirit in Kentucky’s Rand Paul, the freshman senator who has plans to form a Senate Tea Party Caucus.

The two men get along so well, in fact, that Paul has asked Franken to act as his Democratic mentor.

What with all the brouhaha over George W. Bush‘s revealing interview with Matt Lauer, you may have forgotten that the former president’s memoir, Decision Points, has been released today. In honor of that occasion, the Daily Beast took a look at which politicians-turned-authors have moved the most volumes. At the top of their list? Barack Obama, whose two books combined have sold a staggering 4,650,000 copies.

This morning, Tom Junod over at Esquire‘s political blog offered his take on why Republican voters have been more energized than Democratic ones: sex appeal. In an article titled “How D.C. Became Hollywood for Semi-Attractive People,” he argues that conservative women like Christine O’Donnell, Sarah Palin, Ann Coulter and Michele Bachmann are both “crazy” and the new “standard of beauty,” while lib ladies are “either old or unattractive.” As he puts it, “the Democrats became the CNN to the Republican Fox, clueless in their competence, bewildered by their own best intentions.”

The most exciting primary race from Tuesday surprisingly turned out to be the GOP Senate race in Alaska, where Sarah Palin-endorsed Joe Miller appears ready to unseat incumbent Lisa Murkowski.

In a report today on the absentee ballots, Fox News anchor Gregg Jarrett compares the situation to when Al Franken was elected – and implying he stole the election.

It seemed inevitable that someone would say this to Sen. Al Franken before his tenure in Congress was over. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, fed up with Franken’s alleged various funny faces and eye-rolling during his speaking time, went up to the senator after his allotted time and derisively reminded him that “this isn’t Saturday Night Live, Al.

Sen. Al Franken has been quick to use time in the Senate to define himself as an outspoken advocate of independent programming and media. This past Saturday Franken used his closing spot at the Netroots Nation conference to advocate for Net Neutrality. In his rousing remarks Franken told that crowd that Net Neutrality was “the First Amendment issue of our time.” Also, beware of Fox.

While the media has spent most of Elena Kagan‘s Supreme Court hearings fishing for the most entertaining tidbits (not an easy feat), parts of the substantive discussion that weren’t about Twilight were fascinating, too. Today, Minnesota Senator Al Franken posed to Kagan challenging questions about the state of the media, and gauged her comfort level with major media mergers like the proposed one between Comcast and NBC Universal.

Slate points out that Elena Kagan seems to be having a good time at her confirmation hearings, others involved don’t necessarily seem to be quite as entertained. Exhibit A: Senator Al Franken‘s drawing a sketch of Senator Jeff Sessions during the hearings yesterday.

There are few things more important to our country, our society, our very way of life than the United States Supreme Court. Therefore, the selection of a new justice is one of the most interesting news stories possible. Every few years, we, as Americans, get to sit back and literally watch history being made in front of our very eyes. We get to see our country’s future being written. We get to- Oh my God! Is Al Franken falling asleep? He totally is!

Recent changes announced by CEO Mark Zuckerberg at last week’s Facebook F8 developer conference have some even more concerned than usual Internet privacy experts. And while It’s not surprising then that many people are creating angry groups and sending angry letters, what is surprising though is one group of four are all US Senators.

While he was half of the duo Hannity and Colmes, Alan Colmes was the subject of derision from the left. Monday morning quarterbacking Colmes’ responses to Sean Hannity‘s guests was a favorite pastime, and current liberal hero Senator Al Franken (D-MN) mocked him mercilessly in his book. I bet they all miss Alan now.

Conservative activist Jason Mattera has been making a lot of noise lately, and it looks like it’s paying off. Hot on the heels of his ambush interview of Senator Al Franken (D-MN), conservative mainstay Human Events announced that it has named Mattera its Editor in Chief. He will also have “significant involvement” with Human Events’ sister site, Redstate.

The brash, young (26 years old) Mattera certainly knows how to get attention, but is he a good fit for the 66 year-old “Conservative Bible,” favorite newspaper of Ronald Reagan? Is Redstate, hub of serious conservative activism, ready to be helmed in Mattera’s direction?

Conservative activist Jason Mattera recently ambushed Senator Al Franken, ostensibly to ask about the health care bill. But the video revealed that Mattera was more interested in a cheap stunt than conducting a serious interview, as he never gave Franken a chance to respond (and even called him “Senator Smalley”.) Bill O’Reilly had Mattera on his show last night, and didn’t hide his contempt for Mattera; That’s right: Bill O’Reilly was siding with Al Franken.

Conservative activist Jason Mattera, who created a stir at this year’s CPAC, has posted video of an ambush interview in which Senator Al Franken (D-MN) is driven to exclaim “You need to shut up right now!” During the interview, Mattera constantly interrupts Franken, calls him “Senator Smalley,” and attacks provisions of health care reform that support funding for schools and breastfeeding. At least Mattera wasn’t wearing a costume. Check it out after the jump.

Welcome back, my friends, to the show that never ends. Or something. The Senate pulled an all-nighter last night in a effort to “reconcile” the amendments to the health care bill. They were only sort of successful. Cue one of those times where you learn things about Senate procedure that you probably never knew. Even Al Franken is confused.

Al Franken is not entirely comfortable with this whole “Senator Scott Brown” thing. The newly seated Massachusetts Republican is being partially blamed for a heated discussion between Franken and senior White House advisor David Axelrod, during which the senator attacked Axelrod for the lack of direction, specificity, and initiative the Obama admin has taken on health care reform.

It’s no great secret that Senator Joe Lieberman has enraged many liberals with his vocal, well-publicized threats to derail the health care bill under consideration.
Dana Milbank’s theory: Lieberman is just an old-school moderate, which is something today’s hyperpolarized Senate can’t handle.

On his Friday show, Bill O’Reilly went after former comedian and now senator from the state of Minnesota, Al Franken for quieting the, uh, polarizing Joe Lieberman on the floor of the Senate on Thursday, breaking custom by not granting his buddy Joe another few minutes to wrap up. O’Reilly was not happy and used the opportunity to abuse the left, as usual.