Al Franken's Blog, page 77
January 30, 2012
Care2: Al Franken Supports Marriage Equality
Senator Al Franken, in a video for the Human Rights Campaign's American's for Marriage Equality, has given his reasons for supporting same-sex marriage while urging other Americans to do the same.
In the video, released Thursday, Franken says: " I support marriage equality. My wife Franni and I have been married for 36 years, many of them happy. I think everybody should be able to marry the person they love, and I think our government should help people make those loving lifelong commitments."
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© Al Franken - U.S. Senator, Minnesota, 2012. |
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Winona Daily News Editorial: Our view: Time to add sexual orientation to anti-bullying effort
Bullying has never been acceptable.
It has never been understandable.
It simply should not be tolerated.
But, with technology providing even more potential methods of bullying others, it has never been more important to emphasize that bullying is wrong.
The consequences, tragically, can be fatal.
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© Al Franken - U.S. Senator, Minnesota, 2012. |
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Southwest Review News: Senators buy time for Mendota post office
It's unclear if Mendota's post office has gained a reprieve or just a stay of sentence, but either way the historical and beloved institution will be spared from closure for at least a few more months thanks to — of all things — a letter.
That letter, dated Dec. 9 and signed by 20 U.S. Senators, including Minnesota's Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken, called for a six-month moratorium on the cost-cutting measures the United States Postal Service is considering, most notably the closing and consolidation of 3,700 post office locations nationwide.
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© Al Franken - U.S. Senator, Minnesota, 2012. |
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January 26, 2012
The Hill: Sen. Franken and conservatives join forces to fight detainee language
Strange bedfellows on Capitol Hill, ranging from Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) to Rep. Jeff Landry (R-La.), are joining forces to change controversial detainee language that was signed into law by President Obama last month.
The bipartisan effort is a clear indication that the debate on the government's power to detain suspected terrorists, including U.S. citizens, will continue into 2012.
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© Al Franken - U.S. Senator, Minnesota, 2012. |
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MinnPost: Sen. Franken makes web ad for marriage equality group
Sen. Al Franken is the latest celebrity to make a web ad promoting marriage equality in a campaign sponsored by Americans for Marriage Equality.
It's a national campaign, but the issue has heated up in Minnesota with a November vote coming on a state constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage in the state.
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© Al Franken - U.S. Senator, Minnesota, 2012. |
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January 25, 2012
Pioneer Press Editorial: More progress on St. Croix bridge south of Stillwater
In June, we went on record on these pages in support of an imperfect solution to a real problem. The solution is a four-lane freeway-style bridge crossing the St. Croix River south of Stillwater that would help solve the town's longstanding traffic-congestion problems. It needed exemption from the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to allow the project to go forward.
The bridge, with an estimated price tag of $574 million to $690 million, took a major step toward construction Monday with approval in the U.S. Senate. The St. Croix River Crossing Project Authorization Act, spearheaded by Sen. Amy Klobuchar, was passed on a voice vote under a unanimous consent procedure used to expedite proceedings on legislation not considered controversial. That label belies the history of the long-delayed project, but we welcome the move nonetheless.
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© Al Franken - U.S. Senator, Minnesota, 2012. |
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January 24, 2012
Fox9: U.S. Senate Passes St. Croix Bridge Bill Unanimously
On Monday, a bipartisan bill that would allow the St. Croix River bridge project to move forward was unanimously passed by the U.S. Senate and will now face a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives.
The bill, which had bipartisan support and was cosponsored by Democratic Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken, of Minnesota, and Herb Kohl, of Wisconsin, also has the support of both Gov. Mark Dayton and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.
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© Al Franken - U.S. Senator, Minnesota, 2012. |
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January 23, 2012
Pine Journal: Sappi touts energy efficiency, environmental stewardship during Franken visit
U.S. Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) made a stop at Sappi Fine Paper in Cloquet Wednesday as part of his statewide manufacturing tour. During his one-hour visit at the mill, he met with company leaders and toured a portion of the mill, which employs approximately 750 people.
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January 20, 2012
Let's talk about intellectual property
Friends,
As you may know, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has decided not to bring the PROTECT IP Act (the Senate's version of SOPA) up for a vote next week. And since I've heard from many of you about this issue, I wanted to take a moment to share why I support copyright protection legislation — as well as why I believe holding off on this bill is the right thing to do.
As someone who has worked hard to protect net neutrality, I understand as well as anyone the importance of keeping the Internet free from undue corporate influence. There are millions of Americans who rely on a free and open Internet to learn, communicate with friends and family, and do business.
At the same time, there are millions of Americans whose livelihoods rely on strong protections for intellectual property: middle-class workers — most of them union workers — in all 50 states, thousands of them here in Minnesota, working in a variety of industries from film production to publishing to software development.
If we don't protect our intellectual property, international criminals — as well as legitimate businesses like payment processors and ad networks — will continue to profit dishonestly from the work these Americans are doing every day. And that puts these millions of jobs at serious risk.
That's reason enough to act. But these criminals are also putting Minnesota families in danger by flooding our nation with counterfeit products — not just bootleg movies and software, but phony medications and knockoff equipment for first responders.
We cannot simply shrug off the threat of online piracy. We cannot do nothing.
I have supported the approach Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy has taken in crafting legislation to respond to the threat of online piracy — and I appreciate his leadership on this important issue.
But I've also been listening carefully to the debate — and to the many Minnesotans who have told me via email, Facebook, Twitter, and good old fashioned phone calls that they are worried about what this bill would mean for the future of the Internet.
Frankly, there is a lot of misinformation floating around out there: If this bill really did some of the things people have heard it would do (like shutting down YouTube), I would never have supported it.
But that doesn't mean we shouldn't take seriously the concerns people have shared. And if holding off on this legislation gives us an opportunity to take a step back and try to bring everybody back to the table, I think it's the right thing to do. This is a difficult issue, and also an important one. It's worth getting this right.
I strongly believe that we need to protect intellectual property – and protect the free and open Internet. I think most people, even those who have expressed concern about this particular bill, agree. And it's my hope that we can now build a stronger consensus around how to accomplish these two important goals.
Thanks for reading. And for those of you who have written to me about this issue (even if it was an angry letter), thanks for being honest with me. I'll always return the favor.
Al
© Al Franken - U.S. Senator, Minnesota, 2012. |
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