An Al Gore presidential bid is the biggest threat to:

[Maddy McCall]

If Al Gore decides to run for the Democratic nomination, which of the listed candidates' campaigns would a Gore presidential bid threaten the most?


Please add comments, explaining your poll vote.

[seemunkee]

1. All of them

[Benhurst]

5. Great minds think alike.

:hi:

[mike_c]

7. agreed-- they would all be dead in the water...

...if Gore gets into the race. Americans from BOTH parties would view a vote for Gore as correcting a terrible mistake.

[Mabus]

9. That was my initial reaction too

and it is a threat to the Republican party.

[XemaSab]

19. word

n/t

[Hosnon]

22. The question asks for a superlative.

His entrance can't affect more than one candidate the most. Only one can be affected the most.

And that person is Hillary Clinton.

[Uncle Joe]

42. Of course, the superlative can change,

today it might be Hillary Clinton, later it might be one of the other candidates, depending on how the race is going. In that regard, I believe all the candidates will be affected, as for ultimately whose candidacy will be effect the most, only time will tell.

[Benhurst]

2. You should have included an "all of the above" choice.

[Maddy McCall]

3. I didn't, because I think that one or two candidates...

will be affected more than others.

[Hosnon]

23. You were correct to leave the choice out. It would have been

grammatically awkward.

[mod mom]

4. anyone who is not a populist and is tied to the corporations. Gore is a man of the people.

[TwilightGardener]

6. Dem victory in '08.

[Maddy McCall]

8. You think that Gore will endanger a Dem win in 2008?

Please explain.

And, do tell, which candidate do you think will guarantee a Dem victory in 08?

[TwilightGardener]

14. Yup. Look at McCain. No one wants a retread. I think Obama would guarantee

a victory (obviously!), but Hillary and Edwards could fare pretty well, also. No one outside of DU/hardcore Dems is going to get excited over Al Gore. That's my own personal opinion, of course.

[Maddy McCall]

16. You honestly think that Obama has a better chance of winning the general than Gore?

Amazing.

I am of the sway that none of the current field can guarantee a Dem victory in 2008...and I'm certainly of the opinion that none will have a better showing than Gore would.

I firmly believe that Gore is unbeatable.

And I also think that your McCain/Gore comparison is laughable.

[TwilightGardener]

18. Yes. I do. Americans are ready for a change. They're not crazy about

Hillary as it is, I think they'll be even less crazy about another blast from the past. I do think Obama is our best chance to win--he can pull over Repugs and Indies like no one else can. Gore is too single-issue--THAT will turn off many who don't really give two shits about global warming, in either party.

[Maddy McCall]

21. Can you show any proof that Republicans would cross over to vote for Obama?

And you must not know much about Gore, if you think that his only interest is the environment. Gore has received recent acclaim because of his work for the environment, but that is certainly not the only interest he has.

[TwilightGardener]

25. He came in third in a recent Iowa poll of Iowa REPUBLICANS--ahead

of McCain and Fred Thompson. I am not the one who thinks Gore's only interest is the environment, but that's how the general public primarily knows him, I'll bet. Aside from being VP.

[trudyco]

33. My very republican in-laws saw his dvd - now they believe in

global warming. Total turn about. I think they have respect for Gore that they never had during the elections. He came across then as stiff and of course the republicans smeared him. The in-laws had a completely different view of him after the Inconvenient truth.

So while Hilary comes across as yet another Clinton, Gore comes across as someone who has had his eye on the ball. He GOT global warming. Obviously the Clintons didn't.

I think he won't be viewed as more of the same.

[Occulus]

39. Everyone I know and work woth gets excited about a Gore run

WTF are you smoking?

[mike_c]

10. ROFLMAO....

Can you say LANDSLIDE? I know you can....

[Warren DeMontague]

45. Gore would energize our party like no one else. Gore has executive AND senate experience.

Gore has the gravitas, the brains, the connections, everything. I'm sorry- I like Obama, too, but there's simply no comparison. Gore is a born leader, he has everything we need in a President AND a candidate- except that he's not running, not yet.

If he gets in, he WILL win.

[Forkboy]

11. Whoever the frontrunner is,because they wont be for long.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

12. Obama's instant toast if Gore steps into the race.

There's no way Obama can compete with Gore. If he thinks he's being dogged by questions of inexperience now, just wait until someone with 8 years of VP experience enters the ring.

[rinsd]

13. I think Obama, Clinton & Edwards in that order.

None of the others is registering enough to matter.

Obama gets hurt by this because Al Gore could steal his rock star thunder with young people.

Clinton would likely see defections from her org.

Edwards gets hurt because he is basically pushed off stage with the entrance of Gore.

[daninthemoon]

15. Until this primary "season", Al would have certainly been my

dream candidate. Hate to point it out again, but he doesn't want the job. Please don't shoot the messenger.

[Netbeavis]

17. Barrack bites hard the most it if Gore comes in

Barrack is running primarily on emotions and hope, something that a Gore entry will totally deflate and capture for himself. I don't think Barrack would settle for a VP slot on the ticket but Hillary, in her ego quest to be the first female in higher office than Pelosi, would take the spot...with an eye 8 years down the road to run again herself (She'd only be 68, I believe). We could see 16 straight years of a Blue White House.

Gore/Clinton in '08 Gore's popularity plus Clinton's money & Bill on deck....pretty appealing and nearly impossible for GOP to defeat.

[Dawgs]

30. It's Barack, not BARRACK.

If you want people to take your post seriously, at least spell the man's name correctly.

Gore/Clinton = :puke:

Gore/Obama = :applause:

[Netbeavis]

34. damn spellchecker

my error for just breezing through the spellchecker....but that's where the "r" came from.

[damntexdem]

20. I had to say Hillary; but the most-threatened was not listed:

the GOP candidate!

[MonkeyFunk]

24. nobody

he's not going to run.

And if he did, I just don't see how he becomes the frontrunner, as many here claim. He's 50 million behind in fundraising, and aside from a contingent of DUers, he's not all that popular.

[Conscious Confucius]

26. That's nonsense

Al Gore is the only Democrat that has the respect or at least toleration of the middle and right. I can't tell you how many times I've been asked if Al Gore was going to run, many times by completely apathetic people. Just look at how the right wing media tres to make up crap about Al eating rare fish. They think he's too powerful, yet they have little political ammunition to bring him down.

[Hosnon]

29. That's not what the polls asks.

To begin, it assumes that he enters the race. Saying, "he's not going to run", specifically refuses to address what the OP intended to address.

Furthermore, being the frontrunner means that he poses, and actually will be, a large enough threat to all of the candidates to surpass each of them. Again, the OP asks something different. Granted, your answer ("nobody") is one that the OP perhaps should have included. But, again, it's the OP's question.

Out of the individuals listed, who does a presidential bid by Al Gore threaten the most (assuming, of course, he enters the race)?

No snark intended. :)

[MonkeyFunk]

31. in that case

the answer is obvious: Clinton.

She's the frontrunner, and any new candidate threatens her most.

[Hosnon]

36. That was my initial response but I'm questioning it.

Gore would likely eventually become a top-tier candidate (and probably instantly). The race would most likely be between Clinton and Gore. The other candidates, e.g., Obama, Edwards, would most likely lose their shot at going up against Clinton.

As a result, Clinton goes from #1 to "Maybe #1, At Worst #2". Everyone else drops accordingly. I now think that either Obama or Edwards would be hurt the most, and Edwards would probably be hurt more than Obama (because Gore is a Southerner and Edwards would likely be portrayed as "Gore-Lite").

Edit: Content.

[MonkeyFunk]

38. well I disagree

that Gore would automatically jump to frontrunner, or anything close.

I really really like him, but I don't think a mere announcement propels him anywhere near to first place.

[Hosnon]

40. Hmm...that is a point of disagreement then.

I do think that he would jump at least just ahead of Obama, probably close to Clinton, and perhaps ahead of Clinton.

I must say that I hope we get to see who is right.:) Though I doubt that he will run.

[Kelly Rupert]

27. Where's "The Republican Party?"

:)

[Netbeavis]

35. they're beat either way so why bother? n/t

[JackORoses]

28. This is why Hillary has been campaigning for 6 months already

To have a fightin' chance,
She had to make herself look like the frontrunner,
before the real frontrunner even stepped into the race.

Bring It, Al!

[MasonJar]

32. All of the above. If he runs, I assume he will win.

[northzax]

37. how about other:

the environmental movement. Can you think of one thing that would further politicize climate change science than it's leading public advocate reentering politics?

Al Gore will not run for President in 2008. Quit holding out for a candidate who is never going to run and is thereby keeping resources off the table for those who do want to run. Al Gore does not want to be President. And if you don't want to be President, if you don't NEED to be President, at your very core, you are not going to win this election.

[Maddy McCall]

41. You evidently aren't very well read on the anti-global-warming crowd.

The people who deny that humans contribute to global warming do so because of political implications.

Gore being president won't change their views...their views are already politicized.

[Uncle Joe]

43. Your information is off, Al Gore has never said he didn't want to be President. n/t

[northzax]

49. has he ever shown that he really WANTS to be President?

he ran a lackluster campaign in 2000, was outhustled and outfought on the campaign trail and on the recount battle. he's spent the last 7 years out of politics and out of government. If he really, truely, wanted to be President, he'd be running today.

[Uncle Joe]

51. To the contrary, I believe Al Gore ran an excellent campaign.

He beat Bush by over half a million counted votes in spite of the corporate media's almost two year war against his integrity by libel and slander, while they simultaneously camouflaged Bush's shortcomings, lies and mistakes. This came after the Clinton Witch Hunt and Lewinsky Scandal set the stage for integrity to be a prime issue in the 2000 race, particularly among the reddish moderate to conservative states, where the people still primarily rely on the corporate media for their information. Bush had enough sense to take advantage of the gift the media was so obviously giving him and run on the ludicrous lie of "restoring honor and integrity to the White House". I believe, of all the lies Bush has committed to date, this was the worst, for all the rest of the lies and atrocities flowed directly from this one.

The corporate media was motivated in large part because Al Gore empowered you, me and just about everybody else here when he championed the Internet. They wanted to retain their monopoly on information and over time came to resent Al for empowering the people over corporate media heads. I believe this loss of power, money, and influence was the primary motivating factor in their institutionalizing their open disdain, as they trashed and slandered him relentlessly, even openly admitting at one point to wanting to keep the race close whenever Al started to pull away.

With our so called "fourth estate free press guardian watch dogs for democracy" working a one sided game against Al Gore, it's a miracle Bush didn't win in a landslide.

[Warren DeMontague]

46. You know what? MY support is not for YOU to dictate. I will support who I damn well please.

My resources are not "on the table" for anyone unless I *SAY* they are.

Why don't you support who you want, and I will do the same.

[northzax]

47. enjoy the Guiliani Presidency then

or perhaps you would prefer Mittens? or hold out for a saviour who isn't coming. Hey, I think there's a play about that...by that Beckett fella...

[Warren DeMontague]

50. No, barring Gore getting in I'm supporting Kucinich in the primaries.

I will support our nominee whoever he or she is, of course, but until that time none of them are automatically entitled to my support.

Get it?

[saltpoint]

44. Gore's keeping his cards very close to his chin these days. He defies

all guesswork about his plans and notions.

If he gets in the race, he becomes the frontrunner within minutes.

He gives the lukewarm supporters of all candidates a prompt for re-evaluating their votes and by the current numbers, that would hurt HClinton, Obama, and Edwards, in that order, but it would further weaken the rationale for a third-party effort by either the hapless fools over at the Unity headquarters or the every-negative Ralph Nader.

It would be a showstopper, in order words.

[smoogatz]

48. Whichever Republican douchebag wins the nom.

I think a hell of a lot of Americans look at Al Gore these days and say "what if," "if only," and "we got screwed."