Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) has a famous sense of humor, one that, in a previous life, served him as a Saturday Night Live comedian. Now Franken has become one of the most merciless Democrats in the Senate, holding President Trump and his appointees accountable — even when they're friends.

As Franken writes in his new book, jokingly titled Al Franken: Giant of the Senate, he has made an effort to extend a hand across the aisle. "Behind the scenes, he tried to cultivate friendships, including with conservative Republican senators who wouldn't be among his natural allies," USA Today writes.

That includes former Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) and former Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.). It does not, however, include Sen. Ted Cuz (R-Texas):

While the book provides a glimpse at some surprising friendships among senators across ideological lines, there are no kind words in it for Ted Cruz. The Texas senator gets an entire chapter of his own, titled "Sophistry," that describes him as "singularly dishonest" and "exceptionally smarmy." (Cruz's office didn't respond to a request for comment.) "You have to understand that I like Ted Cruz probably more than my colleagues like Ted Cruz," Franken said in the interview, "and I hate Ted Cruz." [USA Today]

Read more about Franken and his new book at USA Today. Jeva Lange