Almanac: At the Capitol

There's a lot of talk about other Democrats who may enter the race to challenge Al Franken. The first obvious name is Mike Ciresi who could not be reached directly but his people and lots of others are chatting with him about re-entering the U.S. Senate race. Ciresi has money and infrastructure that wouldn't be too difficult to re-start.

The other big name is Congressman Tim Walz. Democrats love the idea of Walz for higher office, many were thinking governor could be the next step, but then they run the risk of losing the first district to Republicans. It's a risk some DFLers may be willing to take. They want the Senate race more than one congressional seat.

Time is a factor. The DFL State Convention is just a month away and delegates would like to leave squarely behind one candidate. Dems I've talked to are also privately outraged that Franken's campaign didn't scrub the record before launching such a major campaign. He certainly has the money. Word around the Capitol is that Franken's troubles are not over either. It it good that he's talking rather than getting in a bunker mode which campaigns can do under fire. I think Minnesotans like to see someone come clean, admit a mistake. But a week or two should reveal if Franken will survive or if other Democrats try to challenge him.

Other names that are being talked about include: R.T. Rybak, Tom Bakk, Tarryl Clark. Let us know what you're hearing.