Why Gore Is Not Being Evasive to Maintain Interest in Global Warming (And Why Not)

[DrFunkenstein]

The deadline for the Florida ballot is Halloween. How many more days of interest could he possibly sustain for the issue of global warming by delaying? If anything, I believe that he would only damage himself - and his role in fighting climate change - in the longterm if he were to simply play coy to the end.

You could argue that he is trying to strengthen his hand for a later endorsement by showing the candidates how badly they need his signature, but I don't buy it.

I simply don't believe that waiting a few weeks would make enough of a difference to justify the potential sullying his reputation as the coyest man since Fred "Not Just Yet" Thompson.

He is already riding high, and it seems an unreasonable gamble to push it to the very end.

As for those who take him at his word that he "has no plans" and "does not intend" to run, well I'd point you to the revolving door speech of a certain Republican whose bathroom follies shall not be named. The one who changed his speech from "I'm resigning" to "it is my intent to resign." So much for good intentions.

Gore has surely thought about what he would do after a Nobel Prize victory. Taking a look at the tea leaves, I believe he will wait a respectable amount of time after the Peace Prize announcement to make an announcement of his own. To do so more precipitously would overly politicize the award, allowing the GOP to later claim/spin that the choice was political.

By waiting a small amount of time, he lets the glow settle in before he moves forward.

It seems to me that he is given the choice between a shrewd political move - particularly since he has the other candidates thanking him - and a highly unnecessary gamble with his reputation.

I believe that he had been waiting to see if Obama presented enough of an obstacle to turn the process into a three-man (person) race. However, its clear that Gore would become - for all intents and purposes - the sole alternative to Hillary Clinton's bid.

Like the rest of those paying attention, Gore knows that the race remains extremely fluid and - while Clinton has pulled ahead - virtually no one has locked up their decision. Apologies to her supporters who believe that she has become prohibitively favored. Its just not true, however hard you squeeze your hands together in prayer.

I think Gore knows that his chance is there. He knows that he has a lock on her unfavorability numbers while matching and exceeding her gravitas. He trumps her experience card easily, and that is by far the best card she is holding.

I think he's in. To win, that is.

[sweetladybug]

1. DrFunkenstein, I think Gore is in to win also.

Our country needs him!
Gore 2008!!!!!!!!

[ms liberty]

2. Off to the Greatest Page! n/t

[Blue Belle]

3. Thomm Hartman brought up an interesting point the other day...

He said that Gore would dismantle the Hillary machine by approaching one of the other Dem Candidates (i.e. Edwards, Obama, Richardson) and telling them that he is in and he wants them to run as his VP. That way if he were to pick, say, Obama, the voters would know the ticket they were getting and Gore would instantly get Obama's financial backing to bank roll his campaign. It may sound audacious, but the other candidates know that Hillary is the media darling (no matter what they say about her laugh) and the DLC heir apparent. They know it's going to be tough to stop the full court press of her propaganda machine. They also know the grass-roots groundswell for a Gore campaign and the significance of his polling numbers for him not even being in the race yet. If they had the option to join forces with Al and have the ability to run on VP experience in eight years, it could be very tempting to them.

It's an interesting thought.

[DesertRat]

4. Hmmm....that could work

:think:

[DrFunkenstein]

5. That Would Seem to Work Better For Edwards

I must admit that a Gore-Obama ticket represents some of my most pleasant dreams at night, but the logistics of such a deal seems to work against it.

Obama simply has too much at stake to throw it all out at the first opportunity. Something just doesn't feel right about it.

Edwards, on the other hand, is enough of a longshot to agree to such a deal.

However, Edwards doesn't have enough money to be worth the unconventional effort, and I kind of doubt that a ticket featuring a former VP and a former VP candidate - each of whom were involved in unsuccessful bids from the last two campaigns - would really play well as a narrative.

I get the sense that Gore wouldn't need all that money anyway. Think about how much money the Kerry campaign threw away on completely forgettable TV spots produced by guys with all kinds of conflicts on interest. If Gore could manage a few interest-generating spots, and manage to work the media monkeys properly, I think he could do fine without the big money that made his 2000 run so uninspiring.