Reply #54: Why do you think that Gore's popularity has increased? [View All]

[Jai4WKC08]

I'm asking that honestly. I like Gore. I supported him wholeheartedly in 2000.

That said, I have never heard a single person who didn't vote for him before say they would now. I have heard a few people who didn't vote for him in 2000 say they wish they had, but only because Bush is so much worse than they thought he would be. Doesn't mean they'd vote for Gore this time. The only people I've heard get really enthusiastic about his running again are those who voted for him before.

Personally Clark is and will always be my first choice, but I don't know that he's gonna run. I could support Gore -- I think experience, leadership, and proven competence are important. I don't see many people with those attributes. But I also want someone I think can beat the Republicans. I know, I know... Gore won in 2000. I'll grant that. But he didn't get as many votes as Kerry did in 2004, and Flordia is a harder battle now than it was before. And even more important than before, because of population shift. In other words, the bar for what it takes to win keeps getting higher and I remain unconvinced Gore is a different man than he was in 2000. Or 1988 for that matter.

It probably doesn't matter anyway, because it doesn't look like Gore plans to run. But I want to understand why some people seem so convinced he could win if he did. I just don't see it.