by Dave Mindeman Blois Olson's first undertaking with MinnPost is to deconstruct the Al Franken for Senate campaign. A project he seems to take on with enthusiasm. Al's situation has been a topic of discussion in DFL circles for quite some time -- but let's take a look at how Olson approaches it. Olson contends that Franken has been in trouble in all basic elements of a campaign: In modern U.S. Senate races, the basics matter: money, message and media. So far Franken is at a disadvantage on all three. A. Money Olson: While successful at raising money, Frankens burning it too quickly. Franken has raised more than Coleman, but he also has spent $3 million more than his Republican opponent. Franken does seem to have a high burn rate but with legitimate reasons. Olson uses two examples of other Senate campaigns that are much better at retaining funds. His first, is Cong. Mark Udall's Senate campaign in Colorado. However, Udall has been a consensus pick for that spot in Colorado from the beginning. He was encouraged to run by the DSCC, and the State Party has been behind him 100% from the outset with no primary opposition. He already had a strong donor base as a popular Congressmen, so money has never been a problem. His second example is Tom Allen in Maine. Another consensus party pick in his home state -- he had token primary opposition where his opponent got less than 20% of the vote. Allen is also a sitting Congressman with a solid dono ...
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