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Franken hires Mankato native as campaign manager
Stephanie Schriock helped defeat a GOP incumbent in Montana two years ago.
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DFL U.S. Senate candidate Al Franken said Thursday he hired as his campaign manager a top congressional aide who helped oust a GOP Senate incumbent two years ago.
Stephanie Schriock, a Mankato native, will begin her job in early June. Franken, who is seeking the DFL endorsement to challenge Sen. Norm Coleman, to date has been without an official campaign manager. Top campaign duties have been shared by David Benson and Andy Barr, who also serves as a spokesman.
Schriock is currently chief of staff for Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., for whom she was campaign manager when he defeated Conrad Burns in 2006.
"I am honored to join Franken's campaign for change -- working with all Minnesotans to send another great progressive senator we can be proud of to Washington this November," Schriock said in a statement.
In response to a question, DFL executive director Andy O'Leary said he thought it was a little unusual for a campaign to wait to this point to name an official director, "but I don't think they've been without senior management. I would say there's been a steady hand or two on the rudder."
Barr said the campaign, while not taking endorsement for granted at next month's DFL state convention, was beginning to turn more of its attention toward the general election against Coleman. College professor Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer also is seeking the DFL endorsement.
Franken's campaign said the timing of Schriock's appointment had nothing to do with recent revelations that Franken has paid back taxes in 17 states and overpaid taxes in two others.
"We've always been pretty clear that at some point we wanted to bring in somebody who has a record of taking down incumbents who've forgot why they were supposed to go to Washington," Barr said. "With the work Stephanie did to retire Conrad Burns we're certainly excited to have someone with that track record."
CONRAD WILSON
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