Almanac: At the Capitol

The room was hot and packed, but you never want an empty room when launching your campaign. In contrasting the Coleman campaign kick-off today to Franken's re-launch yesterday, here's some observations. Franken and Coleman spoke for almost exactly the same amount of time, 28 minutes. They both did a good job of engaging the audience and not reading their written remarks and burying their face in a podium. They both showed an impressive range of emotion: from sadness to joy. They both tried to prove they are "passionate." Coleman in a slightly more controlled manner and Franken nearly cried. They both had their wife and kids by their sides. There is certainly a formula for these things.

Here's where they differed: Coleman made time to do Q&A with the press after his remarks and Franken did not. Reporters literally chased after Franken, but staff ushered him out of the Capitol. We like the opportunity to ask follow-up questions. A lot of questions arise in a half-hour speech. Access is good. I understand there are tight schedules, but it's good for schedulers to schedule time for press after a speech, even if it's brief. We're tight on time too.