DFL feminist leader resigns over Franken

Mari Urness Pokornowski, of Cokato, president of the Board of Directors of the DFL Feminist Caucus, resigned Saturday because of the group’s endorsement of Al Franken over his opponent in the Democrat’s nomination battle in the U.S. Senate race.

Pokornowski was not immediately available Sunday morning.

Jackie Stevenson, 73, political director of the DFL Feminist Caucus, helped recruit Pokornowski to run for head of the feminist caucus and describes her as a close friend, said she is disappointed that Pokornowski has resigned but isn’t sure yet why.

No Responses to “DFL feminist leader resigns over Franken”

1. bfolliard Says:
   June 8th, 2008 at 1:03 pm

   Though women are always trying to better themselves, that last paragraph should probably read: battered women’s programs. FYI.

   BF

2. AlanMaki Says:
   June 8th, 2008 at 6:36 pm

   I don’t think the Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party could have picked a more worthless duo to support for President and United States Senate going into this important election.

   Obama talks about “change;” but, he has never defined or articulated what kind of change he wants.

   Franken talks about “standing up” for us when he has never stood up for anything in his life.

   It is pathetic that the MN DFL refuses to take a stand in support of saving the St. Paul Ford Twin Cities Assembly Plant, while Coleman, the Democrat turned Republican, has picked up on the tremendous popular support to save this plant and the hundreds of jobs provided all of which, like the hydro dam providing free, clean, green energy to power the operation, has been subsidized by tax-payers who, like Ford workers, have been frozen out of the decision-making process as Ford goes in quest of “greener” pastures… money green.

   Talk about women’s rights. Thousands of women, many of child-bearing age, go to work in smoke-filled casinos at poverty wages and without any rights under state or federal labor laws. The MN Democratic-Farmer Labor Party and its so-called “Feminist Caucus” which represents women to the same extent that Ray Waldron and the Minnesota AFL-CIO represents workers, have never lifted a finger or raised their voice to insist that this injustice come to an end.

   Koryne Horbal states she will not support Obama… good for her for standing up for something. But, I wouldn’t bother walking across the street to vote for Obama, Clinton or Al Franken… not because of some arrogant, pathetic, obnoxious drivel he wrote in Playboy Magazine, but because, like Clinton and Obama he doesn’t have the political or moral courage to “stand up” for anything.

   The time has come for the Democratic Party and the Minnesota Farmer-Labor Party to once again go their separate ways… the Democratic Party to its corrupt and stand-for-nothing ways… and the Minnesota Farmer-Labor Party needs to get back to its working class, socialist roots best exemplified by the “Red” Finns of the Iron Range who weren’t afraid to stand up to the mining bosses and the bankers.

   For now, I’m going to be voting for the best Democrat running for President— Cynthia McKinney… a real progressive voice, for real progressive change, who has demonstrated the moral and political courage to “take a stand” for what is right; it is unfortunate she was driven out of the Democratic Party by political hacks and has to run on the Green Party ticket.

   Betty Folliard may be concerned about a typo; if only she was as concerned about the plight of Minnesota’s thirty-thousand casino workers, and as concerned about funding shelters for battered women as she is with a spelling error… however, quite typical for one who has supported the move by the MN DFL into nicely framed sound bites for television commercials while opposing bringing forward any real solutions to the many problems confronting working people— with women getting battered the worst in every conceivable way, from being beat up to losing their homes to foreclosures to having their hearts broken as the merchants of death and destruction send their children off to fight an illegal, immoral and unjust war predicated on lies and deceit by the same oil barons who are gouging us at the pumps.

   These Democrats can’t even stand up for making the minimum wage a real living wage… again, women suffer the most.

   In order for working people to “stand up” for real “change” we will have to organize powerful rank-and-file movements where ever we work and strong grassroots organizations in our communities. Then, like in the 1930’s when this rotten capitalist system was on the skids to oblivion, just like it is now; we will have the power needed to win real change.

   Alan L. Maki
   Director of Organizing,
   Midwest Casino Workers Organizing Council

   http://thepodunkblog.blogspot.com/

3. Anonymous Says:
   February 13th, 2009 at 12:44 pm

   It was the right decision Pokornowski made by resigning as at that time the endorsements could have sent out a wrong signal about the democrats. She should have given a press release herself rather than being forced to issue the statement about distancing her group.

   Posted By:
   Labiaplasty New York

4. Anonymous Says:
   April 24th, 2009 at 1:17 am

   Coming back to this because oddly enough the final ruling was made about a week ago. Last Monday, a three-judge Minnesota state panel had Al winning the Senate race, and yea this was after like 5 months of litigation back and forth… and we wonder why it takes our country so long to get things done… anyway.

   He beat Coleman by only 312 votes, thats probably one of the narrowest of margins ever in that state. But besides all the facts, I think Al Franken delivers what the people want. As a WRITER on SNL he wrote some of the funniest sketches ever on T.V. (Stuart Smalley) As a book writer he delivered medicine to try to shrink the head of that big fat slob Rush L. As a politician he will champian causes that help Minnesota.

   If performing your job at a high level is concidered a desierable asset, then Al Franken will outperform anyone. Al has given us what we want, and he will continue to in the US Senate.

   Just my $.02

   Patrick
   http://www.patrickrossi.com