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Sen. Franken: GOP Will Pay For Medicare, Auto Stands

DETROIT (AP) -- U.S. Sen. Al Franken of Minnesota says Michigan's Upper Peninsula could be in the wrong hands.

The 59-year-old former "Saturday Night Live" writer and actor returned to comic form for a while Saturday during an otherwise policy focused address to the Michigan Democratic Party's Annual Jefferson-Jackson Dinner in Detroit.

Franken says Michigan Democrats have a ready-made issue when fighting Republicans next year because of the GOP's resistance to helping the auto industry survive the Great Recession.

He also says Republicans will pay for advocating the gutting of the Medicare program for seniors.

On a lighter note, the Detroit Free Press quotes Franken as saying the difference between Minnesota and Michigan is the Upper Peninsula, which he says is "ridiculous."

He says "by all rights, that's Wisconsin."

(© Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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