LaRouchePAC Action

Kevin E., an LPAC activist in St. Paul, MN, sent in this report of his intervention at a campaign event for Minnesota state legislators in Eagan, MN, attended by US Senator Al Franken. The event was attended by about 30-40 people. Kevin reported that Franken went on and on about how bad the Republicans were, until Kevin decided to break the monotony and interrupt his speech, asking him, "What about Obama? You complain about the Republicans, yet Obama is the one who wants to go to war with Russia and China over Syria, not to mention the fact that he just bragged about stopping Glass-Steagall in a recent Economist article." Franken did not respond, other than to say that they could discuss it later during the Q&A session, which they did.

Kevin got the second question, and followed up his point onthe war danger initiated by Obama. Franken and Kevin then had an uninterrupted exchange that lasted for about 8 minutes, to rap tattention from the audience. Kevin thanked Franken for voting for JASTA, to which Franken responded that there was no way he could have voted against it. Concerning the sale of weapons to the Saudis, he said, I don't support terrorism. He then brought up the recent Saudi bombing of the funeral in Yemen, and said the Saudis don't care if they bomb civilians. He also mentioned they still teach Wahhabism.

In response to Kevin's question about the urgency of Glass-Steagall, Franken said he wasn't on the Finance Committee,and besides, the Republicans would block it anyway. When Kevin reminded him that Glass-Steagall was in both the Democratic and Republican Party platforms, Franken responded that maybe Glass-Steagall would pass next year. To Kevin's sense of urgency about the looming financial collapse, Franken denied there could be another collapse like 2008, and then volunteered that there had been a special session for the bailouts in 2008.

Immediately after the town hall, Kevin had several people come over to talk. A former Ford Plant worker from St. Paul said that it was Bill Clinton who had destroyed Glass-Steagall. The guy was then happy to learn that Bill Clinton had been impeached to prevent him from blocking Glass-Steagall, and also to prevent the new financial architecture from coming into existence. Kevin then said that Lyn's Four Laws gave the principled approach to how to organize a new financial architecture now. A woman who volunteered for a Congressional campaign in Minnesota asked for extra copies of the Four Laws paper.

When Kevin engaged the state legislators in discussion and acting towards the Four Laws, Glass-Steagall, etc, they said they didn't take up federal issues as state legislators. Kevin then showed them the EIR article with pictures of STATE Senator Richard Black next to Bashar Al Assad, to which they became sheepish, and took the Four Laws to think about it.