Watch Al Franken elaborate on his feelings about Ted Cruz, much-hated comedy fan

On CNN Tuesday night, Anderson Cooper read Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) a quote from his new book, Al Franken: Giant of the Senate, about how he probably likes his colleague Ted Cruz (R-Texas) more than most senators do, and he hates Ted Cruz. "He's kind of a toxic guy in an office, the guy who microwaves fish," Franken said.

"To get things done in the Senate, you've got to be able to get along with people," Franken explained. "It's like you're living in a town of 100 people. And frankly, it's good to have a sense of humor — and part of the reason I say I like Ted Cruz more than most of my colleagues like him is that he values comedy. He's kind of a little bit of a comedy fan." He told a story about Cruz coming up to him and Jeff Sessions, then a senator, and bringing up an old Saturday Night Live skit where Franken, as Stuart Smalley, talked with Michael Jordan — and how much Franken had to explain to Sessions for him to understand the reference. He got back to Cruz, explaining that he wasn't picking on Cruz just for the fun of it: "I devote a chapter to Ted, he's the exception that proves the rule, and the rule is that in order to get things done you've got to be a good colleague." Watch below. Peter Weber

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