Gore liberated after 30 years in politics

http://www.dowagiacnews.com/articles/2007/06/04/editorials/dneditorial01.txt

Editorials

Gore liberated after 30 years in politics

Monday, June 4, 2007

Some hope vice president Al Gore, the fourth man in U.S. history in 2000 to win the popular vote but lose the presidential election, is a 2008 stealth candidate.

Gore, 59, understands global warming science better than anyone in politics, going back to Harvard. He began conducting hearings soon after his 1976 election to Congress.

He learned early on how daunting it is to overcome special interest resistance. Their strategy of casting doubt on the science smacks of cigarette makers ridiculing the link between smoking and cancer.

His Oscar-winning documentary and book, "An Inconvenient Truth," have been a tipping point of their own in shifting public opinion and advancing the debate while the planet moves toward environmental tipping points from which we might never recover.

His setback changed Gore for the better. He is more valuable outside the ring than running for the White House.

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His wife, Tipper, gets it. As she told Time magazine for its May 28 cover story, "He's got access to every leader in every country, the business community, people of every political stripe. He can do this his way, all over the world, for as long as he wants. That's freedom. Why would anyone give that up?"

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http://www.modbee.com/opinion/national/story/13628208p-14223977c.html

But he's always been a better teacher than candidate. He is an intellectual, not a natural glad-hander. It didn't matter when he was Clinton's vice president, because Clinton oozed enough charm for the both of them. And on his own as the 2000 presidential candidate he won the popular vote; most Democrats feel the Supreme Court's Republican majority improperly denied him the White House by refusing a Florida recount. The siren song of another run can be tempting. But when he refused Democratic pleas to seek a re-run against Bush in 2004, he did his party a favor. He was intellectually honest, refusing to reinvent himself before his wounds had healed and his sense of self returned.

It was a good move, but he didn't help his political rehabilitation by prematurely endorsing former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean — who promptly fizzled.

Global warming has become Gore's lifeline, and he is comfortable there. He believes in the cause and knows what he is talking about.

Besides, saving the planet is no small deal. But the presidency is a very different thing. Because of his stature and name recognition, he could get into the race quite late, so he can be indecisive through the summer. But Gore is a decent man.

Once the book tour and the concerts are over, it is hard to imagine him rushing back into the political hothouse he never much liked. He was so nervous when he first announced for Congress he promptly threw up, his father once said. Odds are that he won't run. He has found a way to make his mark on the world without the White House. He doesn't need the presidential title any more. He can be himself now, and that's a very satisfying place to be.

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