Is Al Gore About to Make His Move?
Al Gore could easily put speculation to rest by declaring he has no interest in becoming the Democratic nominee and endorsing Clinton or Obama. So far he hasn't.
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In recent weeks, talk of the potential emergence of former Vice President Al Gore as a consensus candidate for the Democratic Party nomination for President has increased in volume. Newsweek columnist Eleanor Clift and Time columnist Joe Klein have both noted that Gore could provide the Democrats a winning exit strategy from the protracted Obama-Clinton primary battle, a fight that promises to get bloodier in the weeks ahead.
One Democrat Congressman and Super Delegate, Tim Mahoney of Florida, has openly spoken of Gore as a potential compromise candidate if Obama and Clinton remain deadlocked when the Democrats convene for their Convention in Denver in late August.
So what does Gore say about this speculation? Nothing, other than that he thinks the nomination may “resolve itself” prior to the Convention. It would be very easy for him to put the “Al Gore scenario” to rest by simply making it clear he has absolutely no interest in the Presidency in 2008. He could end all the discussion and conjecture IF he would simply endorse either Hillary or Barack. But instead, for now, Al is simply sitting back and waiting to see if the situation really does “resolve itself” — or not.
Or, is he just “sitting back”? In subtle ways he seems to be increasing his visibility, perhaps suggesting that he is not just an innocent bystander in the political drama that continues to unfold. Sunday night he made a high profile appearance on “60 Minutes” to talk about his pet issue: the crisis of “global warming” and his roll-out of a major ad campaign to promote the cause. Sunday also saw a British newspaper, the Sunday Telegraph, publish a story claiming that former Gore campaign operatives have confirmed that his inner circle actually mapped out a plan for a Gore campaign last May, a strategy that now has a “sporting chance of coming true.”
But for the potential Gore scenario to snowball into reality several things probably have to happen. First, Gore needs to step up his public appearances on issues that seem unrelated to a bid for the Presidency. Speaking out on “global warming” on 60 Minutes certainly fits the bill. Weighing in on the need for Democrats to find a way to let the voters in Michigan and Florida have their “votes count” might be another. He doesn’t need to engage in a full-fledged public relations blitz, he merely needs to step it up a notch with a few carefully planned appearances on the major Sunday morning talk shows in the weeks ahead.
Second, he needs some leading Democrats — who have no direct or even apparent connection to him — to increase the drumbeat of speculation about Gore being a compromise candidate for the Democrats. They must be careful, however, as premature talk of a Gore-Obama ticket might antagonize some of Obama’s supporters. Concern over slighting Hillary is not as important, since many of her delegates lack deep devotion to her and many likely signed on because she appeared certain to win the nomination.
Gore’s advocates also need to downplay the need for a quick resolution of the impasse between Clinton and Obama. The longer this plays out, the better things look for Gore. Finally, Gore needs one or two national polls to include him in the mix as a potential rival to John McCain. Several national polls have recently shown McCain beating either Clinton or Obama in November, which has caused Democrats to worry about not only their chances of taking the White House but whether or not they might lose their momentum in retaining or expanding their majorities in the U.S. House and Senate. A national poll, or two, showing Gore faring well or even beating McCain in a head-to-head matchup would be just the prescription for a Gore campaign to start snowballing — unless “global warming” causes it to melt prematurely.
Steve Gill is a statewide Tennessee radio talk host and political analyst. His website is http://www.gillreport.com/.
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64 Comments
Tito:I know that Al Gore is consumed with ambition. It has been inculcated in him by his father, who raised him to be President. However, he also has a huge ego. I can’t see him wanting to be just another politician when he can be the American Buddha.
Mar 31, 2008 - 3:00 am Nicolo M.:Never underestimate Al Gore… What about Buddha as President?
Mar 31, 2008 - 5:59 am Snoop Diggity-DANG-Dawg:Please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, PLEASE God, let it happen!
I NEED to see this train wreck so bad I can TASTE it!
Mar 31, 2008 - 6:00 am Wayne:Although the prospect of a Gore candidacy would seem like an opportunity for actually discussing the anthropogenic global warming hypothesis, the alignment of two favored issues of the MSM, AGW and a Democrat in the White House, would seem to make an honest presentation of the subject highly doubtful.
Mar 31, 2008 - 6:16 am David P.:Gore’s early touch would certainly spoil the democrats hope of ever achieving victory in 08. Clinton’ites would have ample time to get to know & like their next US president, Senator John McCain. Obama is the greatest divider because his supporters could live with another Clinton in the white house. The opposite holds true for Clinton supporters, while liberal thinkers, collectively they’ll be unable overcome their cognitive dissonance towards Obama, and will break for McCain in droves.
Mar 31, 2008 - 7:05 am "John Galt":As a lifelong resident of Tennessee (unlike Al) I relish the opportunity to again vote against Mr. Bore (as did the majority of Tennesseans in the last election) and again denying him his self-proclaimed Manifest Destiny to be President.
Mar 31, 2008 - 8:27 am Olivia:Just the idea of a Gore Ticket makes me ill. The man couldn’t even win his own state! He didn’t even make a serious effort with the Florida fiasco. If the Democrats push some Gore-Obama nonsense my centrist parents will not only vote for McCain, but will donate, fundraise and campaign for him. And don’t think they are the only ones that will jump ship. The Democrats since 2000 seem to love losing.
Mar 31, 2008 - 10:06 am Achillea:Lord love a duck, not this again.
Not. Going. To Happen.
‘kay?
Mar 31, 2008 - 10:31 am Thomas Collins:There are two reasons this might happen: (i) many Dem leaders think Obama’s “Wright Stuff” problem, along with the fact that even the MSM is beginning to focus on Obama’s essentially leftist politics, may make him unelectable, and (ii) the Dems’ fear (probably well-founded) that they will lose significanbt numbers of black voters if they abandon Obama for Clinton. The hope is that Gore will be an acceptable alternative for all Dem constituencies.
Mar 31, 2008 - 10:45 am John:Maybe I am a bit slow, but could all of the primary / caucus results simply be ignored? The super delegates have enough weight to tip the results but I did not think they could totally over rule. Although, I have to admit it would be fun to watch the train-wreck.
Mar 31, 2008 - 10:45 am Ron J:Man-Bear-Pig, half man, half bear, half pig. It was ridiculous then and even more so now. So, why not? Bring him on! McCain will squash him like a bug.
Mar 31, 2008 - 10:48 am Fat man:You gotta love the Democrats:
“If we nominate Obama, we will alienate women.
“If we nominate Clinton we will alienate African-Americans and young people.
“So, the solution to our problem is to nominate Gore and alienate women, African-Americans, and young people.”
Say, I am going out to the kitchen to make some popcorn. Would one of you go down to the basement and bring up a six-pack of beer.
Mar 31, 2008 - 10:54 am MMan:[quote]Maybe I am a bit slow, but could all of the primary / caucus results simply be ignored? The super delegates have enough weight to tip the results but I did not think they could totally over rule. Although, I have to admit it would be fun to watch the train-wreck.[/quote]
The primary commitments are just for the first ballot.
If the superdelegates (or enough of them) vote for Gore on the first ballot
Mar 31, 2008 - 10:57 am TomB:neither Hillary nor Obama will get a majority and there will be further ballots.
I’ve been saying for a couple of months now . . . the dream ticket would be Gore for Prez and Obama for Veep.
Every Dem would be thrilled with this, except Bill and Hillary and people on their payroll.
Then we’d see 16 years of Dem presidency. They’d fix health care, global warming, and taxes. They’d appoint 5-7 new Supreme Court Justices. And we’d be living with this freedom-killing legacy for 50 years!
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:08 am Curly Smith:“Maybe I am a bit slow, but could all of the primary / caucus results simply be ignored?”
Yes, the parties can select their nominee by any method or means. It’s their party and, while they may allow you to vote, they don’t have to give you, or your vote, any consideration. If polls showed McCain at 0% going into the Republican Convention then he’d be tossed overboard by his “pledged” delegates. Remember the W. Va primary where McCain’s delegates went to Huckabee? I’m sure more than a few of the McCain voters would have selected Romney instead.
Don’t confuse the nominating process with a real election; it has fewer binding rules than a contest to elect a high school homecoming queen.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:11 am Victor Erimita:First, Gore needs to step up his public appearances on issues that seem unrelated to a bid for the Presidency. Speaking out on “global warming” on 60 Minutes certainly fits the bill.
How about this, would this fit the bill?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/30/AR2008033001880_pf.html
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:11 am Rod Clemson:Typical white man to the rescue. This is really getting good.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:12 am Brian:So the man who claimed that Florida’s votes weren’t counted in 2000 would nullify every Deomcrats’ primary vote in the name of Democracy?!
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:13 am Porgie:Fine by me, run fat man, run. When Gore loses (as he would) in November the lefties would absolutely explode over the implications of what their party is really all about.
Just the identity politic infighting alone would be worth the price of admission; black guy and woman tossed under the bus in favor of bloated whitey loser from yesteryear.
Pay-per-view it and solve the national debt overnight.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:19 am Daryl Herbert:If the superdelegates (or enough of them) vote for Gore on the first ballot neither Hillary nor Obama will get a majority and there will be further ballots.
Two points:
1 - candidates need MORE than a bare majority to win the first ballot
2 - two states were stripped of all of their delegates, but that doesn’t reduce the total number of delegates that Clinton/Obama need to win the first ballot.
So very likely, no one can win the first ballot, even if Gore stays out of this.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:23 am Pyrthroes:Solution is obvious: Run Ted Kennedy with Michelle Obama– “A Road downhill, a Bridge too far”. Truly a triple play! Whigs redux, not a century too soon.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:28 am Scott:If Obama ends the nominating process with even a slight delegate vote lead, I fail to see how Gore (or anybody else) could be characterized as a compromise candidate. Such a move would generate such cynicism and ill-will among Obama supporters that the Democratic party would likely lose a big portion of its consituency in November. Offering Obama a VP spot would be an insult in this scenario.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:31 am moptop:At least Gore used to be somewhat tough on terrorism. “Grab his ass!” is how he put rendition. When asked about whether it was illegal, he reportedly said, “that’s why we do in covertly.”
At least the CIA wouldn’t be falling all over itself to sabotage him.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:33 am moptop:Besides, McCain is no better on climate.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:33 am Al Fin:None of the above. We will have Al Gore as President, and Obama/Clinton as co-Vice Presidents. A troika.
The fusion of THREE ALL-TIME TOP CAUSES of the DP:
Global Warming
Black entitlement
Female entitlement
As a bonus, all three are anti-war.
As an October Surprise, all three could announce that they are secretly gay.
Can’t lose.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:38 am Tom:No candidate can win running on the global warming issue. Gore has been smart enough to talk about the problem most of the time but only offer bromides for solutions. As much as they’d like to cut him some slack, the MSM would have to ask Gore for details on how he would address the global warming crisis if he were president.
How does he answer that question? Tax gasoline, jet fuel and electricity more? Pass laws forcing us to use low-wattage bulbs? To drive hybrids or use mass transit? To leave our homes colder in winter and hotter in summer? To compost?
Voters love the issue when the solutions are just greater conservation (by others) and new technologies, but they’re not going to vote to pay more taxes or give up their SUVs. And even if Gore doesn’t answer the question, the Republicans will happily speculate on what a Gore White House is likely to do.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:46 am Jblog:Correct me if I’m wrong, but don’t have to HAVE moves before you can MAKE one?
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:52 am Larry J:The irony of giving Gore the nomination would be that it would piss off two major Democrat identity groups. From what I’ve read, many blacks will be upset if Hillary gets the nomination because they see one of their own getting pushed aside by a white woman. At the same time, I’ve read that some of the feminists supporting Hillary are mad because they think a “qualified woman” (in their opinion, not mine) is being pushed aside by a man.
Gore is a white man. He would piss off both groups to the point their heads would explode. That alone would be worth the price of the popcorn.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:55 am Dan R.:He’s not gonna endorse anyone yet, simply because the guy is so totally full of himself that he’s gonna wait until the convention so that he can be the king-maker on national TV.
Mar 31, 2008 - 12:06 pm John:Agreed, I’d love to witness the Democrat Party’s utter disintegration with a white man disenfranchising (tm DNC) women, blacks and the young and stupid.
All that *and* getting to watch Gore lose again? We’re not that lucky.
Mar 31, 2008 - 12:18 pm Jason:This would be great. Of course Gore wants it to happen. Here is another politician who thinks it’s “owed” to him. I would love the chance to see more great Gore debate moments, from stalking your opponent on stage to coughing every time your opponent speaks. I would also love the McCain commercials “HE PLAYED ON YOUR FEARS!!!!!” What a nutbag. Of course he is now even more of a millionaire because he played on enviro fears. Sometimes I wish I had no soul either.
Mar 31, 2008 - 12:18 pm Steve-o:Gore has been busy reading how Nixon came back from a questionable defeat in 1960 to win the presidency in 1968. If Al (The Heat) Gore gets a personal trainer, he’s in!
Mar 31, 2008 - 12:36 pm Klug:Earth Day is either the occasion of his appearances or a helpful fig leaf.
Mar 31, 2008 - 12:41 pm bill-tb:Nope, not gonna run … the hoax of global warming will be exposed and Al is making too much money from it.
Not gonna endorse Hillary, and may not endorse Obama. He is a Democrat from Tennessee and his dad was well, I think everyone knows where this is headed. As a child of the south I know who wore the sheets.
I am an Obama man, Jimmy Carter II. You got know real pain before you see the light.
Mar 31, 2008 - 12:54 pm CosmicConservative:This just keeps getting better and better. It is so much fun to be a Republican right now. Who knows what will happen in November, but right now the Democratic Party is just about the most entertaining thing on the planet.
The whole idea of watching an obese man whose house uses 30 times as much electricity as an average home, whose ties to a polluting mining company in his home state have been well documented, and whose global junkets in private jets use more fuel than the average family in a lifetime is one of the most hilarious things I’ve considered for a long time.
I’ve even coined a word for such monstrous arrogant hypocrisy. The word is “algorentian”. As in Barbra Streisand’s algorentian calls for families in the US to dry clothes on a clothesline were dismissed by her personal laundrist with “are you kidding?”
If Al runs, we might just get “algorentian” into the dictionary.
Mar 31, 2008 - 1:08 pm john h:Al Gore did not lose in 2000. The presidency was stolen. So in 2008 he would be running for his third term. I think that breaks the rules.
Mar 31, 2008 - 1:13 pm Andrew Zalotocky:So after all the hype about the first black candidate or the first female candidate along comes a rich white guy to take the nomination through some shady backroom deal? That sounds like the perfect recipe for a riot at the party convention, followed by every angry black pastor in America denouncing it as a racist conspiracy. Gore wouldn’t be the unity candidate at all, he’d be the disunity candidate.
As for his chances against McCain, the GOP would use Gore’s own words against him. They would easily be able to portray him as an extremist who intended to shut down American industry and raise taxes sky-high. They could challenge Gore to say whether he really thinks Global Warming is such a dire emergency. If he says yes he can’t then plausibly deny that he would take radical and unpopular measures to stop it, and if he says no he looks like a phony.
If Gore does take the nomination, whether out of vanity or a sense of destiny, he will lose the election and gain the enmity of much of his own party. Hubris, meet Nemesis.
Mar 31, 2008 - 1:35 pm Rocky1:There are no issues that cannot be solved by a contract from all candidates to place Country and HONOR above all else.
Mar 31, 2008 - 1:38 pm Marianne Case:I was brought up to dream.
Would the candidates consider signing a Contract with the citizens of our Beloved Nation
which guarantees they would do exactly what they are claiming they will do. if elected?
What a great and impossible fantasy.
This sounds like a good conspiracy theory. I don’t think Al is going to bail us out of this Obama / Clinton mess. The super delegates are going to have to get together in the smoky back room at the convention and fight it out.
Would he even do VP again?
Mar 31, 2008 - 2:01 pm Bob:Previously I would have thought Al would avoid the contest because he would be confronted with the impossible task of defending his Global Warming hoax in a public debate with a knowledgeable opponent. Since this problem no longer presents itself, who knows?
Mar 31, 2008 - 2:12 pm Steve, UK:That would be an inconvenient candidacy.
I won’t pretend to understand how he could catch up from so far behind. But you guys are all hoping for Christmas early, come on!!!
Mar 31, 2008 - 2:12 pm Sen Widestance:seriously, hope santa comes through for you all
Nonsense. What’s the attraction?
Did you see 60 mins last night?
Much better off serving the environment.
Plese stop with the Al Gore for prez talk– It’s very Paul-like.
Mar 31, 2008 - 2:17 pm Joan of Argghh!:Shouldn’t he wait for a hot, August night to make his move? I mean, 25% of the country is still under two feet of snow.
Mar 31, 2008 - 3:20 pm Andrew Zalotocky:“Elected” - The Al Gore Remix
(copy it if you like it!)
=============================
I’m your top white plutocrat, You’ve no choice,
I wanna be selected,
I’m Gaia doodle dandy in a gold-walled house,
I wanna be selected,
Kids want Obama, don’t need a fake,
That’s all you’re gonna get kid,
You’re all gonna work for the taxes I take,
I wanna be selected, selected, selected.
I never lied to you, Earth’s always been cool,
I wanna be selected,
I never got the vote, but I told you ’bout CO2,
I wanna be selected, selected, selected,
Hallelujah, I wanna be selected,
Buying every superdelegate in America.
We’re gonna win this one, if it costs a billion,
We’re gonna be selected,
You and me together, but me in front,
We’re gonna be selected, selected, selected,
Irrespective of who you elected,
I’m gonna be selected, selected.
“And if I am selected
Mar 31, 2008 - 3:25 pm Eric:I promise the formation of a new party
An Earth party, the Gaia Party!
I know we had primaries,
We had primaries right here in Central City,
We had primaries on the North, South, East and West,
New York City, Saint Louis, Philadelphia, Los Angeles,
Detroit, Chicago,
Everybody had primaries,
And personally, I don’t care.”
I think it’s utterly nonsensical to believe that either current candidate would just lay down and allow the nomination to be handed over to someone else who’s not had to put in any work or money for it. Campaigning is gruelling work, and Democrats see it as the one enterprise whose fruits shouldn’t be taken from them for the common good.
Mar 31, 2008 - 5:37 pm Donna:Andrew Z: Beautiful.
Mar 31, 2008 - 6:22 pm Webutante:Nice piece, Steve.
Remember, how last spring we were talking about Fred? What a difference a year makes….and all that whoopla has come to this?
Maybe by the end of the summer, someone will be trying to recycle Bill Frist. Meanwhile, tell me Al doesn’t really have a chance of getting the nomination in Denver.
Mar 31, 2008 - 6:25 pm GK:Ohhhhh PLEASE let this happen.
Please let Gore beclown himself on such a large stage.
Mar 31, 2008 - 7:16 pm virgilT:AlGore already blew one Presidential election, that’s enough. Right now, true to his clumsy form, he’s in the process of overplaying his hand on Global Warming. Let’s stick with Barack Obama, on style points alone.
Mar 31, 2008 - 7:20 pm TmjUtah:All this talk of Al Gore swooping in to save the day is just talk until we find out how many high-priced hookers he’s been with in the last decade.
That’s the new pedigree requirement for Lefties, isn’t it?
Mar 31, 2008 - 7:40 pm Immanuel Goldstein:Who knew that the Democrats were going to have their convention in Stalingrad this year?
Mar 31, 2008 - 7:48 pm Bubba:If this big fat commie buffoon gets the nomination, do you think Pat Robertson will vote for him? When I heard that Pat was doing a commercial to raise more money and support for comrade Al’s global warming stupidity I had to call and cancel my gold membership to CBN. My charity will be better managed elsewhere from now on.
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:17 pm Boris:Gore isn’t running, so sorry, rightwngers, your brilliant fat jokes and global warming conspiracy theories will be wasted amongst yourselves.
Apr 1, 2008 - 9:49 am Inventor:Folks:
“BIG” Al has been fed a bunch of currently un supported information that is still tring to be proved and may take 20 years or more to do so.
This year (Winter 07,08) has had the thickest ice shelf for 100 years. Russia has had one of the biggest snowfalls ever as well as China.
Want to do something??? Checkout http://www.water4gas.com and see a way to clean up the environment. Run your car, house, business etc. on “WATER”.
Replant the trees in the rain forrests.
Remove the 1.37 “TRILLON” tons of plastic trash floating around in the North Atlantic ocean.
Recycle all plastic.
If you don’t, just ask the “KIWI” Bird what will happen, oh you can’t, extinct you know.
Man kind is optional on this planet. Earth will go on very well with out us.
Inventor.
Apr 1, 2008 - 12:39 pm CBRER:It has just been announced in Jacksonville Fla. that Al Gore will announce an intention to begin an independent candidacy today. Starting his campaign with the state that cost him his Y2K bid to win the big one. Expect to see live coverage on this evenings national news.
Apr 1, 2008 - 1:43 pm brooklyn red:Awwwwwww, carbon credits!
Apr 1, 2008 - 4:55 pm Bill Bradley:Actually, Al Gore declared he would not be a candidate months and months ago …
Apr 2, 2008 - 11:11 am Bernardo:We already have a disaster in the making with three welfare-state supporting global warming believers in the running for President. How exactly would the addition of this loser to the cast improve anything?
Apr 2, 2008 - 8:34 pm