Sunday morning, TeamFranken assembled en masse on the steps of the Minneapolis Library to walk over to our spot in the huge Twin Cities GLBT Pride Parade. Our energetic volunteers and interns ran ahead to pass out Franken stickers as Al walked through the parade line-up to say hello to everyone. As the parade started, Al returned to take his place at the head of the TeamFranken parade unit, where a big crowd of supporters (including St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman) had gathered together to march with Al.

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In April, Al visited Westwood Elementary School in Zimmerman as part of our Green Jobs Week. Westwood Elementary is Minnesota’s first LEED-certified school, and Al was very impressed with the school building and the enthusiasm of the students as they told him why their school is so great. Now, Al’s visit to Westwood Elementary School is highlighted on the U.S. Green Building Council’s Build Green Schools website.

Read more after the jump…

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Al spent Saturday morning in Duluth this weekend, cheering on runners at Grandma’s Marathon for his second year in a row. He got a great response from runners and spectators both, and he even got a brief mention in the Star Tribune’s sports section:

Al Franken, the DFL senate candidate, was at the race. “I was up just to cheer people on,” he said.

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Monday

Wellstone Hall, Labor Temple, Duluth

Last Monday, Senator Klobuchar, Congressman Ellison, and many more DFL leaders united behind Al and DFL congressional candidates El Tinklenberg and Steve Sarvi at a news conference at the Minnesota State Capitol.

As soon as the news conference was over, Al was off on a four day “Standing Up for Minnesota” tour around the state. A Duluth rally at the Labor Temple’s Wellstone Hall kicked things off, where Al spoke to the crowd from in front of a portrait of Sen. Paul Wellstone. The Duluth News Tribune called it “an apt place to start a general election bid to unseat the late Sen. Paul Wellstone’s successor, Republican Sen. Norm Coleman.” Read the rest of that article, or watch TV coverage of the rally.

From Duluth, TeamFranken headed off for a meet & greet in Grand Rapids at Brewed Awakenings, where we met a “full house of local residents” (don’t take our word for it, check out the Grand Rapids Herald-Review article. ) We grabbed some of Brewed Awakenings’ excellent soup (Pad Thai!) on the way out and headed to Bemidji, where folks packed into the Green Mill to welcome Al. And Al got a chance to get some of his favorite walleye to go. The Bemidji Pioneer came by to cover the action:

“We want an economy that works for everyone, not just the special interests,” Franken said to about 50 supporters crammed into the Green Mill’s Lantern Room. “That means rebuilding the middle class in this country. That means rebuilding the labor movement in this country.”

Read more from the rest of the tour after the jump.

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On Monday, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Congressman Keith Ellison and other DFL elected officials and progressive leaders rallied with Al and other DFL candidates to kick off their campaign to fight for hardworking Minnesotans. Al thanked the united front of DFLers in attendance for their support.

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Mary from Detroit Lakes was one of our super convention volunteers. Check out what she had to say:

Wow, just got back from an amazing weekend in Rochester at the state DFL convention. What a great weekend for Al and all of his supporters!

We arrived Friday, June 6 and I headed straight to TeamFranken volunteer headquarters. I got to meet so many people (from all over the state), staff, volunteers, interns. We all have one thing in common -­ we are all passionate about Al and getting him elected. For most of the day we held up signs outside and yelled/screamed for Al, while the Rochester TV cameras rolled.

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Wondering what it was like to be working on the floor of the DFL State Convention this weekend? TeamFranken Intern Anne shares her experience:

Energy and excitement were bursting from the bustling convention center and Team Franken didn’t waste a moment before getting to work. The energy, cheering, demonstrations, organized chaos, and behind the scenes action helped contribute to the weekend’s success, but so much has been done over the past year to make it possible. Al’s acceptance of the DFL endorsement was the culmination of countless hours of hard work and sleepless nights and was the reward for all the people who contributed to the campaign in so many ways. I was honored to be a part of Team Franken this past weekend and am excited to move ahead towards the general election!

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Al spent the past weekend visiting with Minnesota farmers in Renville, Sleepy Eye and Granite Falls. Rainy weather meant scrapping the original plans for Al to spend some time in the field. But they made up for it with a lot of kitchen-table conversations, and a lot of coffee.

The Granite Falls Advocate-Tribune covered Al’s visit, and Granite Falls farmer Tim Velde told the Advocate-Tribune about his experience hosting Al.

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The campaign’s week-long focus on the emerging green economy concluded with a “Green Jobs Showcase” held at the campaign headquarters. On display were a variety of homegrown items and technologies, ranging from “plastic” toys composed primarily of recycled rubber to a vinyl tile made from recycled carpet that would otherwise end up in a landfill. Ice cream was served, but even this frozen treat was done in a sustainable way. The ingredients were all locally grown and produced, and both the bowls and spoons were made from biomass sources, are entirely biodegradable – and were sent to be composted at the end of the event.

Full text of Al’s speech from the April 27th Green Jobs Showcase:

I don’t think I have to tell anybody here about our energy crisis.

Here in Minnesota, we know the cost of Washington’s failure to reduce our dependence on foreign oil.

We feel that cost every time we fill up the tank.

We feel that cost every time we pay the heat bill or the electric bill.

We feel the cost when the price of everything rises because the trucks that carry our food and our products to the store have to fill up, too.

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Al spent the week talking about putting Minnesota at the forefront of a new green economy. He toured schools, business, and developments that are using renewable technologies and creating green jobs.

Among the stops was a Monday visit to Sage Electrochromics, a Faribault-based company whose technology allows for windows to be tinted electronically. They’re the only manufacturer of this technology – and they’re here in Minnesota. Their product reduces heating and cooling costs, and is part of the reason that Minnesota is the “Silicon Valley of windows” – a phrase first coined by the President of Sage.
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