Former Sen. Al Franken said he should still be a senator and blasted cancel culture, marking a sharp reversal from the 2018 political climate that led to his ouster amid scandal.
Franken, who resigned from his position as a Minnesota senator after being accused of sexual misconduct, said he has had several members of Congress who called for his resignation years ago apologize to him since, saying they came to appreciate his calls for due process, he said on The Takeout podcast released on Friday.
“I should be a senator. What happened was just something very odd at a certain moment … I believe I should still be there, and I believe if I had gotten due process, I would,” Franken said.
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While he has forgiven the former colleagues who apologized publicly, Franken said he doesn’t forgive those who expressed remorse privately.
The former left-wing senator, known for his work on Saturday Night Live for 15 seasons, also slammed cancel culture’s “chilling effect” on comedy at college campuses.
Comedians would “explore the edge of offending people, and people I think understood that then, and that was a positive thing,” Franken said, saying it “made people think in a different way.”
“You know, all you need is a small percentage of people on campus to cause a stink or a ruckus. And so it doesn’t — we’re not talking about necessarily 95% of students. You know, and so it’s just I think it’s too bad,” he continued.
Franken, a left-wing senator elected in 2008, resigned in January 2018 after Leeann Tweeden, a radio host and former sports commentator, accused him of kissing her without her consent while the two were rehearsing a skit. After she accused him of groping her, a photo was released that showed Franken, who at the time of the photo had not yet been elected to Congress, with his hands apparently hovering over Tweeden’s breasts as she slept.
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Other comedians have blasted cancel culture, with Bill Maher claiming “comedians are under attack” on Jimmy Kimmel Live earlier this month. Kimmel agreed, adding, “Just disagreeing with people is not OK anymore.”
Franken did not respond to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
