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[Terwilliger]

1. I don't think that question is answered by tonight's events

it will be after NH that we'll know

[hlthe2b]

30. I agree with Terwilliger on this... Too early to tell, just as

I think it is way to early to count Dean out. And clearly, we don't have any idea yet how Clark will factor in, either.

[AP]

2. I said a fair amount, but I don't think he had that much to begin with.

I think Gore has one big problem: he has no central principles around which the logic of his persona revolves. He doesn't seem like a man of conviction.

In some senses, Bush's greed is way more effective organizing principle than whatever mysterious ball of whatever it is that drives Gore.

[joefree1]

3. I said none at all

The Beltway crowd are on their way out. Maybe it won't be Dean or Gore but the days of the special interest in Washington running things are over.

And saying Gore has no central principles completely disses all the work he's done during the Clinton years and previous years.

Edwards may make a pretty speech but he couldn't touch Gore's legacy. Enjoy the Iowa glow as long as it last.


Images from Dean Rocks the House of Blues, Hollywood
From wtmusic http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=919849
From Joefree1 http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=921300

[AP]

7. Tell me in a sentence what you think motivates Gore. I'll tell you in a...

...sentence what seems to motivate Edwards, and we'll compare. I bet my sentence makes more sense to more people and your sentence about Gore sounds like a trite platitude.

I'm serious about this. Record or no record, Gore seems like a man with no conviction and with no logical, admirable motivating principles.

[joefree1]

11. I'll put both of them in a sentence

While Gore was working in politics to make this a better world Edwards was working to enrich himself as a trail lawyer.

He never took a pro-bono case. Perhaps he's better man now. He regrets not having done pro-bono work but comparing him to Gore?

[AP]

13. Gore is VERY rich. And he has only been a politican and a teacher. Go ...

...figure.

Edwards has EARNED his income doing great things for people who got help they really needed. Edwards could have made more money doing other kinds of law.

His whole career was "for good".

Lawyers who need to do pro bono: medical malpractice DEFENSE lawyers, insurance company lawyers, criminal lawyers, corporate lawyers. They owe a little to society.

Every one of Edwards's cases resulted in changes in law and corporate policies which saved other people injury and misery and death. That is a public service. And it's invaluable.

[joefree1]

15. Yeah, great guy, here's what the New York Time says

He represented many sympathetic plaintiffs, among them some horribly crippled children. He became rich doing it, racking up more than $175 million for his clients from 1985 to 1997 and amassing a personal fortune of at least $38 million, according to North Carolina Lawyers Weekly.

At the same time, he did little or no pro bono work. Nor did he pursue public-interest lawsuits. While he speaks passionately about civil rights and the bravery of civil rights leaders, for instance, he has never used his legal skills to fight against discrimination through the courts.

Neither was he active in politics for the first 44 years of his life, except for the occasional donation to a Democratic candidate. He never ran for office or worked on a campaign. Indeed, before he burst onto the political scene in 1998, he did not even vote in several local elections, because, he says, he was too busy with his legal work.
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/12/politics/campaigns/12EDWA.html?pagewanted=2&ei=5062&en=422c04ad8c2ada87&ex=1074488400&partner=GOOGLE

[BurtWorm]

9. Gore is a man of no conviction?

And you support whom?!

[AP]

12. The candidate who seems to have the most conviction - Edwards.

Again, I'm serious about Gore.

I don't see anyone try to explain what Gore gives the impression that his convictions are organized around.

Why is he a politician? What is he trying to achieve? Mere platitudes won't cut it, and if it something you could easily say about any candidate, it's not enough.

[BurtWorm]

14. Gore actually has some vision. Have you read his speeches since 2000?

I don't see why Edwards needs to be in this race at this time. He's a nice guy, but this is a critical moment for the Democracy. It can't be Democratic politics as usual.

[joefree1]

16. Or read his book?

Heres what Publishers Weekly says about his book "Earth in the Balance":
Vice President-elect Gore explains the necessity of enviromentalism and offers bold initiatives for change in this thoughtful, compelling primer, a QPB selection and PW bestseller. Illustrations.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

[Toucano]

18. Edward's was on Gore's "short list"

for the VP slot, according to CNN.

I don't know if Dean was or not, but it would seem like he would have chosen to endorse one of the guys he thought could be president in 2000.

He endorsement came too early, regardless.

[AnnitaR]

4. Where was Gore this week???

Did I miss him this past week?

I don't remember hearing about him stumping for Dean all the week before tonight's caucuses.

One would have thought that Gore would have been all over the place for Dean this past week. Is Dean saving him up for NH or something?

[ProudToBeLiberal]

6. we have 49 more states to go...

maybe he is pacing himself sheesh

[Old and In the Way]

23. Now that you mention it.....

it is odd that Gore was MIA. In fact, I wonder why Carter, Clinton, Gore didn't make the rounds...if only to show solidarity with all the candidates and the event.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

5. Other.

He lost almost none, but he didn't really have a lot to begin with.

Our political system doesn't traditionally have much of a place for former Presidential candidates, unless they can keep alive the idea that they are also viable future Presidential candidates.

[Rowdyboy]

8. In 2000 Al Gore picked Lieberman-Very Bad Choice

In 2004 Al Gore picked Dean-Very Bad Choice

[Clark Can WIN]

10. the moment he opened his mouth and told the other candidates to give up

and get behind Dean he lost. Very not classy. Yes I KNOW those were not his exact words but he was very clear imo. And yes, I did see the speech.

[joefree1]

17. And Clark said Bush was his spirtual blood brother two years ago

I mean while we're spinning. :crazy:

[Toucano]

19. Link please.

8. If you make a factual assertion about a candidate that is not generally accepted to be true, you must provide a link to a reputable source to back up your claim.

[joefree1]

22. I made a "sarcastic comparison"

To the previous link where the poster interpreted what Gore has said, ergo, spinning.:crazy:

[Clark Can WIN]

27. since my honest impression is insultingly discounted as spin by you

perhaps you would be so kind as to provide a transcript, so I can point out for you in Gore's own words what I found unseemly.

[dreissig]

20. No Loss of Gore Capital

Gore won't lose much political capital because Iowa's results will be seen as anomalous. Election theorists will eventually explain what went wrong, but the mistake will be corrected in the next primary. Kerry's appeal is quite limited. Poll numbers put him at 6%, not at Iowa's absurdly high 37%. That outcome shows that the process itself is screwy.

[PurityOfEssence]

21. Gore's support typified nothing as much as hero worship of the meek

There is a weakness of many on the left: an unwillingness or inability to be tough and decisive. This has manifested itself in a zealousness of many for Dean because he attacked frontally. The problem is that not everyone likes that kind of rancor, and many of us don't like being told that we're not part of the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party, don't like being called Bush-lite, cockroaches or any number of other things.

Gore's support reeked of cheer leading from the AV room and awe of the jock-of-the-moment, and this will definitely take him down a few pegs.

If you really think about it, Dean has thrown so many barbs at those of us on the left, that we also are numbered among the "bad". Some of us don't like that. There's also the jaw-dropping recklessness of Dean's pronouncements ringing in the ears of so many of us.

Hero worship seems to be the core impetus for Gore, and that version of fawning over popularity is not a particularly attractive personality trait.

[CRYINGWOLFOWITZ]

24. none, he didn't have any left anyway

lol

[countmyvote4real]

25. Yikes! DNC ops pay attention to this thread!

like Al Gore. I didn't approve of all his ticks, but I loved the way he would respond to Tim Russert as if Tim were a "special" child. Priceless. So, I'm in the minority.

As a Mac user I like that he's on the Apple board. Once again, I'm in the minority. But thank you DU for being so platform neutral that I can still respond from a legacy Mac.

I do think that Gore's endorsement of any candidate at that time was premature. He should have waited for things and us to sort themselves out. However, I think he made the right choice for the time of his anointment of Dean as a sort of a "John the Baptist" to prepare the way for the real nominee. We'll see. But Al Gore was the real “JTB” if you consider his lame treatment by the press. They took his head on a platter and instead pitched the miserable failure regime we have now. If I were in his shoes, I might have endorsed the Dean revolt, too. (But that’s not going to happen IMHO.) So candidates should learn, learn, learn: the fascist media is not your friend.

You are always on. Your wardrobe is under constant consideration. (And it’s not in a QEFTSG kind of way.) When you’ve reached this level of scrutiny, your policies and platform have been shot into oblivion.

Gore had and has good ideas, but he was ultimately perceived as the whipping boy for Clinton’s extramarital BJ. (I included both ideas together, but can’t honestly state which issue is/was repulsive to the MW press and therefore: middle America.)

So, bottom line I think that Gore will always have some relevance as a martyr for the cause.

OBTW, he received more votes and should be the President rather than the current resident. In all the current misdirection, that’s got to piss you off a bit. I can forgive him and still support him.

[DoveTurnedHawk]

26. Gore Has Terrible Political Judgment, Unfortunately

The best decision he ever made was agreeing to be Clinton's VP. Everything since then has been pretty bad.

DTH

[IowaBiker]

28. Not much.

Biggest loser was Tom Harkin.

Biggest winner was Christy Vilsack, the wife of D-Governor Tom Vilsack.

Tom kept his distance and wasn't visible at the victory party, but Christy was all over the place, having a great time.

BTW, I worked on Tom's campaign back when he was over 30-points behind and went a head to win.

Maybe Christy knows how to pick a dark horse?

Brian

[Piperay]

29. Time will tell

it is to early to know yet, could be alot or none at all. :shrug:

[Indiana Democrat]

31. Gore has the political instincts of mashed potatos.

It was proven last night, and it will be reinforced in N.H., and then his political career will be officially over after all the primaries...All due to his support of Dean.