Al Gore has said he's not running for President, but he hasn't made the "if nominated I will not stand, if elected I will not serve" speech. What is he thinking?
Well, I believe Al Gore is thinking about how he can best serve his nation and the future interests of humanity.
You see, I think Al Gore has better things to do than be the next President of the United States. Notwithstanding the damage done by the Bush administration, the President of the United States has long levers at his/her disposal. However, there are some different levers that Al Gore can use precisely because he is Al Gore and he is not running for President.
Does Al Gore seek publicity? Sure he does. But he uses publicity as a tool for his cause, not as a toy for his personal enjoyment. Indeed, given that Al Gore is probably what the Myers-Briggs Inventory would call an "I" personality type, publicity activities are likely to drain rather than increase his personal energy. In other words, publicity for Al Gore is work, not gratification.
Does the continuing speculation about his possible candidacy help to keep Al Gore in the public eye? No doubt. However, before we trash the guy for thinking it's all about him, let's consider what consequence this has.
Does it keep some of the Democratic "base" from making a committment to one of the declared candidates? Maybe. Given that it's still early in the game, I would argue that this is not a bad thing. Furthermore, I would argue that Al Gore is being both honest and responsible by recognizing that none of us knows what the future will hold.
At this point, I really do believe that Al Gore has better things to do than become the next President of the United States. I think it would be a personal sacrifice for Gore to run for and serve in that office. I also think it's a sacrifice Al Gore would be willing to make if he thought it was our best shot at avoiding another 4+ years of an administration like BushCo. But that's not where we are right now.
Right now, the GOP is bleeding political capital. The RWNM is looking for opportunities to slash and trash -- because when you can't build your side up, you have to try to tear the other side down. But here's the thing: When the RWNM is forced to go after a lot of different people, their dishonesty becomes more evident and they begin to look silly.
So I look at it like this: Under certain circumstances, Al Gore as a late entrant could make sense. Meanwhile, he's doing a valuable service by drawing fire.