Gene Lyons: "Gore might not run, but he can still campaign"

[TahitiNut]

Al Gore and Sen. Joe Lieberman spoke out about the Bush administration last week. What they said reinforced for many Democrats two important lessons from the 2000 campaign: first, that Gore’s inability to combat the Washington celebrity press’ relentless attacks upon his character and personality cost him the presidency; second, that a big factor in that failure was picking the sanctimonious Lieberman as his running mate. Seemingly chosen to convey disapproval of President Bill Clinton’s sexual antics, Lieberman brought little to the campaign except the lukewarm approbation of Washington insiders. His debate performance against Dick Cheney resembled a timorous insurance agent trying to mollify an angry customer - appropriate for a politician long devoted to keeping Connecticut’s insurance industry happy. Lieberman’s pussyfooting helped Cheney masquerade as a teddy bear, resulting in an administration in which the relentlessly aggressive vice president and a phalanx of neo-conservative ideologues dominate a feckless and unaccountable president.

Anyhow, "Smokin’ Joe," as Republican editorialists at the hometown Arkansas Democrat-Gazette call him, made a thinly veiled attack on his two New England rivals for the presidency, Howard Dean and Sen. John Kerry, in a speech at the National Press Club. "A candidate who was opposed to the war against Saddam," he said, "who has called for the repeal of all the Bush tax cuts, which would result in an increase in taxes on the middle class... could lead the Democratic Party into the political wilderness for a long time to come."

As opposed to today, senator? Snoozin’ Joe appears to think that the prescription for taking on George W. Bush in 2004 is Republican Lite. A surer formula for disaster can hardly be imagined.

No matter, because the hapless New York Mets have a better chance of winning the World Series than Lieberman has of securing the Democratic nomination. Polls showing otherwise are an illusion based on name recognition.

(more ...)

I often agree with Gene Lyons. In this one, it's 99.44% (only because nothing's 100%).

[KoKo]

1. hmmmmm...I've ignored all those "Gore might run" posts...but

this article from Gene Lyons makes me wonder. Especially the sharp words about Lieberman. I almost feel Lyons was pointing out that Gore had broken with Lieberman at this point.

And, he titles his article: Gore MightNot Run..But He Can Still Campaign.........

Well...I'm not going to even think about that one more....

[TahitiNut]

2. I don't as much care whether Gore runs ...

... as whether a message and vision of democracy and truth is articulated. For me, it's about values and ideals, not about being a member of some "fan club". We seem to have this knee-jerk reaction to almost any reporting -- one of making judgements of the person (deity or demon?) rather than the issues. I'm not interested in "leaders" as much as I'm interested in (re)presentations of the values and principles of democracy. It's about re-presentation, I believe, and the Bushoilinis have shown themselves to be misrepresentatives. Joe seems to be a 5W-10W lubricant ... greasing the shaft we're getting.

On edit: I sometimes wonder how much of Gore's decision to not run was based on not wanting to get tied (again) to a corporatist. If he were to run, perhaps he'd be obliged to do an encore with Joe, and maybe he discovered how much of a corruption/stretch of his political values that was. They sure aren't on the same page these days. It makes me wonder whether they ever really were.

[KoKo]

3. It's looking like they were a "misfit." Bad advisors or handlers put them

together....

In hindsight, anyway, that's the way it looks given Lieberman's behavior.