"I've no plans to stand for US presidency again," says Gore

[Laura PourMeADrink]

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world/story/0,,1779987,00.html

I've no plans to stand for US presidency again, says Gore

Rob Sharp, in Cannes
Sunday May 21, 2006
The Observer


Former US vice president Al Gore has denied rumours that he plans to stand for the US presidency, saying he could foresee 'no circumstances' that would cause him to change his mind.
Asked yesterday evening at the Cannes Film Festival whether there was any truth in speculation that he had his sights set on the White House again, Gore said: 'I don't plan to be a candidate again for national office... I don't see any circumstances that would cause me to change my mind. I was in elective politics for 24 years. I've made four national races, two for president, two for vice president. I have found there are other ways to serve, and I'm enjoying them.'

Gore dodged a discussion on whether Hillary Clinton would make a good candidate for the Democrats in the 2008 presidential race, although he stressed the importance of elections this year in the House of Representatives and Senate. He said he felt it was important for the elections to 'come out the right way so there's the chance of balance and accountability' through Congress, which he felt had been 'sorely missing.'

Gore is on a promotional tour for An Inconvenient Truth, a film that aims to raise awareness of the issues surrounding climate change. He said humanity faced the prospect of the 'end of human civilisation' unless they accepted the reality of global warming.

snip

[magellan]

1. !?!

:-( :cry:

[wakeme2008]

2. Another

:cry: :cry:

But from this point on Al do not change your mind....

IMHO the best thing that you could have done for the environment was run and help make changes. Oh Well...

[robcon]

3. He didn't have much of a chance to win, anyway, IMO

And we've got plenty of potential candidates that want to be president.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

5. Why? He won in 2000. And he is so much more relaxed now.

Plus - it's uber obvious now to most all people that he was right about global warming. He also helped balance the budget and created a surplus. He helped with a plan to make the US debt free. And the best part, he was against the war when being against the war was not cool.

[robcon]

8. Huh? Relaxed = winning???

He's a dull campaigner. Dull campaigner=loser.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

10. He was criticized for being stiff. You must not have seen him

speak since then - anything but dull. Now look at Evan Bayh if you want dull.

[ktlyon]

12. also he was labeled by the right (dull and other comments)

none of which were true, just a tactic used by rethugs. Gore won and he would have done better if the media had played fair and been unbiased. Gore could have responded better, no doubt, about that but cheating is hard to overcome. The election tactics of the rethugs is undemocratic and has been going on for as long as I can remember. I used voting machine in Houston for years that were hard to punch throw the chad it wasn't just 2000. Rethugs have been suppressing the vote, intimidating minorities, and many other tactics since the civil war.

[pretzel4gore]

4. something to remember

snip>
But the critical constituency for a viable presidential run was to be found not in voting precincts, but rather in corporate boardrooms, network office suites and the top echelons of the Democratic Party apparatus. Among the few hundred individuals who really “count” in shaping American electoral politics, Gore was decidedly out of favor.

Their verdict was reflected in sluggish fundraising and what Gore associates called the “skeptical media coverage” of his book tour. The blow to Gore’s presidential aspirations was softened, according to press reports, by the former vice president’s new-found wealth, gained in part from a vice chairmanship at a West Coast investment firm.

In explaining his decision, Gore has offered only one political motivation—but it is a highly significant one. Referring obliquely to the 36-day battle over the Florida vote and the Supreme Court ruling that ultimately handed the presidency to his Republican opponent, Gore told his “60 Minutes” interviewer, “I think a campaign that would be a rematch between myself and President Bush would inevitably involve a focus on the past that would, in some measure, distract from the focus on the future that I think all campaigns have to be about.”

In other words, a second Gore-Bush contest would inevitably raise the overtly anti-democratic manner in which the 2000 election crisis was resolved, and bring into question the legitimacy of the Bush administration. In his desire to avoid such issues, Gore reflects a preoccupation of the entire ruling elite and both political parties.
<snip
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2002/dec2002/gore-d21.shtml

[Minnesota Libra]

6. Oh crap - ok now I'm depressed - I can't think of anyone else I like nt

[Laura PourMeADrink]

11. clark - brilliant, sexy, was against the war. n/t

[napi21]

7. I actually think He could do a lot more good for the Dems &

the Country by campaigning for whoever our candidate is. We've all listened to his recent speeches, and most of us have been very impressed. Many people, including me, made comments like "Where was THIS Al Gore in 2000?"

IMO, when he speaks now, he doesn't have to think about offending any particular group, State, or individual. He is free to say what he THINKS. As a candidate, nobody ever has that much freedom.

I think he could rally Dems like no other person in the Country, and it just might be better for everyone, including Al, to campaign for our chosen candidates instead of being a candidate himself this time.

[durrrty libby]

9. This makes me truly sad, but I will still hold on to a shred

of hope his mind will change in the future.
It is still too early.

[unblock]

13. of course he's going to deny it NOW. but when the time is right....

it's WAY too early for any presidential candidate to toss his or her hat into the ring.

any serious candidate ALWAYS denies such plans early on, so they can control the announcement and avoid giving their opponents a head start on the negative campaigning.

[saltpoint]

14. Al was there for the film. He wanted to talk about the environment.

I think he's not running for president unless of course he is running for president. That's all he really said this time.

The door's still open and he could turn and walk through it any time he wants.

It could be that he's placed a handful of private telephone calls to key people in early primary states to ask them to withhold endorsements "until a bit after the 06 midterms." If the early primaries don't produce a clear winner -- and it's a crowded field so far -- a consensus candidate would be an exciting headline in the Democratic nomination race.

Gore fits the description & could jump in to great fanfare in time for "Super Tuesday."

[dogday]

15. I hate that

All I know is I would like to see Feingold somewhere on a ticket either the President or the VP spot.. We have many good choices this election, and I will get behind whoever gets our nomination....

[lildreamer316]

16. What a clever man he is.

I just love watching him circle his prey like a lion. Brilliant.

[crispini]

17. He's going to say that right up until the minute he becomes a candidate.

Which he should! Cross fingers, knock on wood. He'd be GREAT!

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

18. Good For Him!

"I've made four national races, two for president, two for vice president. I have found there are other ways to serve, and I'm enjoying them.'"

What a sincere statement that is. And he's absolutely right. He has been making an impact even outside of a campaign arena, and he seems more confident then he's ever been.

I'm fine with this if he doesn't run again. I'm in the boat of thinking he couldn't win anyway, even though he won the first time around. I think it would just renew too much competitive emotion and possibly cause those that were possibly thinking of switching to voting democratic to vote repub instead merely because of a sports like mentality.

God bless him anyway though, he continues to be one hell of a great man.