Focused Franken arrives at Capitol

WASHINGTON – Al Franken, the former comedian who won a bruising, eight-month vote recount and court battle in Minnesota, arrived on Capitol Hill Monday, a day before he is to be sworn in as a new Democratic member of the Senate.

But Franken immediately downplayed the importance of his vote in the deeply divided chamber.

“A lot has been made of this number 60,” Franken said. “The number I’m focused on is the number two. I see myself as the second senator from the state of Minnesota.”

Franken’s victory would seem to hand Democrats their long-desired 60-vote supermajority, one that would allow them to defeat any Republican filibuster and clear the path for legislation on energy, healthcare, immigration and a host of other contentious issues.

But it isn’t likely to play out that way. For one thing, two Democrats, Sens. Robert Byrd of West Virginia and Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, are sidelined by serious illness, casting doubt on their availability for roll call votes.

For another, several moderate Democrats are expected to have serious reservations about the energy package, which will seek to cap industrial carbon emissions, and the health care bill, which is expected to contain a government-sponsored insurance plan that would likely draw opposition from insurers and other business groups.

That means a handful of Republican votes could be necessary to pass any sort of sweeping piece of legislation.

Indeed, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., intimated as much at a press event Monday welcoming Franken, saying that Republicans will have an opportunity to help shape the agenda.

“Democrats aren’t looking at Sen. Franken’s election as an opportunity to ram legislation through the Senate,” Reid said. “In turn, Senate Republicans must understand that Senator-elect Franken’s election does not abdicate them from the responsibility of governing.”

Reid and Franken met for about 20 minutes Monday to discuss the upcoming work period. Franken will be formally sworn in today in the Senate chamber.

Franken’s committee assignments assure that he will be thrown in the middle of two of the highest-profile debates in Congress. He will work on health care as a member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. As a member of the Judiciary Committee, he will participate in the confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, set to begin next week.