Al Franken endorses Sidran

SEATTLE – Comedian and political commentator Al Franken has weighed in on Washington state’s Democratic primary for attorney general, saying candidate Mark Sidran has the ability to win in November “or whenever the Department of Homeland Security allows us to vote.”

Franken, author of “Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right,” issued the endorsement letter after being approached by the Sidran campaign, Sidran spokesman Keenan Block said.

“I have known Mark since I was accidentally admitted to Harvard in the late 1960s,” Franken wrote. “Mark, who got in on merit and merit alone, was a classmate of mine, and has made something of himself.”

The two did know of each other at Harvard, but weren’t close friends, Block said. The letter lauded Sidran for setting up domestic violence and environmental law divisions in the Seattle City Attorney’s Office, which he formerly headed.

Franken also praised Sidran’s “three E’s”: experience, integrity and energy.

A spokeswoman for former Insurance Commissioner Deborah Senn, Sidran’s opponent in the primary, said the more moderate Sidran was desperate to prove his Democratic credentials.

“If Al Franken knew Mark Sidran’s policies, he certainly wouldn’t be supporting him,” said Senn spokeswoman Karen Besserman. “This is a serious race, and Sidran’s making a mockery and a joke out of it. We have lots of endorsements from actual Washington voters.”