Sen. Amy Klobuchar, enjoying a reputation as one of Washington's most charming pols, has scored one of the most coveted speaking roles in the Democratic universe: She will keynote this month's annual black-tie Jefferson-Jackson dinner in Richmond, Va. To get a sense for how big this is, consider the last three speakers: Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Bill Clinton. Not bad company for a 49-year-old freshman senator from Plymouth, Minn., with a scant national profile. At first blush, it would seem Minnesota's first elected female senator would be overshadowed by months of national media attention paid to the more famous junior senator and ex-comic from Minnesota. But while fellow DFLer Al Franken has labored to keep his head down, Klobuchar has been busy reprising Hubert H. Humphrey's Happy Warrior image. Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, whose state Democratic party hosts the March 20 event, called her "one of the funniest people in the Senate."
