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MINNEAPOLIS--Al Franken's "backup plan" in case he lost the race for the U.S. Senate will save his bacon regardless of the final election results, according to recent reports.
Last year, Franken secretly committed to a part in the new Amy Pohler TV series, now called "Parks and Recreation," where he was to play a befuddled Midwestern mayor.
As the election is yet undetermined Franken has been unable to commit to the series. But an ultimatum from the producers has created an unexpected situation, and the Franken camp has come up with an unusual solution: Cast Franken's election opponent Sen. Norm Coleman in the role.
The producers liked the idea so much they rewrote the role to suit Coleman's personality--that is, a fussy ex-hippie who can't stop talking about the fact that he was at the Woodstock Festival but tends to creep toward the political right more each day.
Coleman is said to be close to accepting the role, since it looks less likely that he will win the election.
Another domino that fell in Coleman's favor was series star Pohler, who is warming up to the idea. Literally.
"I thought Norm was kind of creepy when he swung by yesterday to meet with the writers," Pohler said. "But then he said he was at Woodstock and I got all hot."
This is satire. In reality, Minnesota is a pretty insignificant place, and could do fine with just one senator permanently