Senators kick off convention for Minnesota delegation
Philadelphia -- Minnesota DFL Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken rallied the state's delegates Monday during a morning meeting on the first day of the Democratic National Convention.
Klobuchar made no mention of the resignation of DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz in the wake of leaked emails that show party leaders worked to undermine Bernie Sanders’ campaign.
Instead, she told the delegation they can expect a much different convention than the one Republicans held in Cleveland last week.
“With Hillary Clinton, first of all you’re going to see a vision," she said. "You’re going to hear a lot more details."
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Franken also largely stayed away from Schultz’s resignation as he spoke to the delegation. And he echoed Klobuchar’s prediction that the convention would be markedly different than the Republican gathering. Franken brought up the late Sen. Paul Wellstone as he looked ahead to the convention.
“This convention is about, ‘We all do better when we all do better.’ That’s what Paul said, and that’s what this convention is about. That’s what Democrats are about and it’s a very, very stark contrast to what we saw last week which, frankly, I found kind of scary,” Franken said.
Franken said he spoke with Bernie Sanders Sunday evening and offered him a joke about the leaked emails that showed party leaders were undermining his campaign. He predicted Sanders would deliver a great speech on opening night of the convention.
“No one is going to be able to talk to the importance of unity better than Bernie Sanders,” said Franken.
Minnesota's delegation also heard from top Hillary Clinton campaign staffers about her efforts to unite the party with a positive message and vision during the convention.