Al Franken: podcast appearances and interviews

Alan Stuart Franken, born on May 21, 1951, is an American politician, comedian, screenwriter, and actor. He served as a United States senator from Minnesota from 2009 until his resignation in 2018. Franken is a member of the Democratic Party and initially gained fame as a writer and performer on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live. He worked on the show in three separate periods, first as a writer from 1975 to 1980, then returning from 1985 to 1995 as both a writer and briefly as a cast member. Prior to his political career, Franken established himself as an entertainer, appearing on television and in films. He later became a liberal political activist, hosting a radio show and authoring satirical books focused on scrutinizing the American right. Although initially dismissed as a novelty candidate due to his comedy background, Franken was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2008 after narrowly defeating incumbent Republican Senator Norm Coleman by just over 0.01 percent of the nearly three million votes cast. He was reelected in 2014 with 53.2 percent of the vote. Franken resigned in January 2018 amid allegations of sexual misconduct but has expressed regret over that decision. In September 2019, he announced that he would host a radio program called The Al Franken Show on SiriusXM, covering topics including global affairs, politics, and entertainment.