I’m sure we all remember this bit from earlier in the year:
Even though I honestly had not planned on doing this, I guess with a billion people watching, it's as good a time as any. So, my fellow Americans, I'm going to take this opportunity right here and now to formally announce..." --Al Gore, before being drowned out by the orchestra at the Oscars
And now Gore has uploaded three campaign-style videos to current.com addressing Healthcare, domestic spying, and withdrawal from Iraq.
Why does Al keep doing this to us?
It’s clear at this point that Gore has not completely ruled out a run for the White House this cycle.
I haven't made a Shermanesque statement.
Gore speaks often of not currently running, or of having no intention of running, but he has never categorically ruled out a run like he did in 2002:
LESLEY STAHL:
You know, you’ve been all over television, all over the newspapers for this last week. You’ve given back-to-back interviews. You’ve answered virtually every question except one (laughs) and that is, are you or are you not gonna run in 2004? Are you gonna run?
AL GORE:
Well, I’ve decided not to run. And I--
LESLEY STAHL:
You’ve decided not to run?
AL GORE:
I’ve decided that I will not be a candidate for president in 2004 ... And I found that I’ve come to closure on this. I don’t think it’s the right thing for me to be a candidate in 2004.
Needless to say, Gore has left the door open.
But like the Oscar bit earlier this year, Gore’s campaign videos continue to fan the flames and fuel the speculation that he might jump into the race.
Gore has acknowledged the draft effort that is underway to convince him to jump into the race. His office even put out a statement following the $65,000 ad buy in the New York Times.
In 2003, we had a similar, albeit smaller Draft Gore effort. However, shortly after Gore caught wind of our efforts, he asked the Draft Gore leaders to stop. He repeated that he was not going to run for President no matter what. He didn’t want us wasting our time and money in a futile gesture when we could be contributing to and working for an actual candidate.
This time, however, Gore has not done so. Our draft effort is much, much larger, yet Gore has yet to say anything besides an occasional "thank you." He has seen us spending hundreds of thousands of dollars and man hours in an attempt to get him into the race. If he was really not even considering running for President, he would have told us to stop a long time ago, before we grew to become 200,000 strong.
Simply put, Al Gore is encouraging us. By not asking us to stop, by joking about running, and by releasing campaign-style videos, Gore continues to drop hints and give us hope that he may yet enter the race. Without question, he is doing nothing to dampen our excitement and is doing nothing to stop the speculation.
Why would he do this? Is Gore so full of himself that he would feed on all the attention and press that the draft effort is creating? Is he an egomaniac who loves to hear others beg him to run for President, even though he had long ago decided that he would not? Is he so vain that he would use the hopes, labor, and dollars of hundreds of thousands of people to raise his own profile and increase awareness of the climate crisis?
I reject those ideas. Gore proved in 2000, when he graciously conceded the contested election to Bush for what was widely seen at the time "the good of the nation," that he is not a power-hungry person. He proved in 2002, when he forcefully came out against the Iraq War, that he wasn’t concerned with his own popularity in the public’s eye. He proved in 2003, when he called off the draft movement, that he wasn’t a vain egomaniac.
I believe we’re left with the simplest answer to the question of why Gore is fanning the flames of speculation.
He’s doing so because he’s thinking about running. And if he is, he can be made a candidate.
And that’s where we come in.
Draft Gore
America for Gore