Will he or won't he? I wrote last week about David Brook's panicky assault on former Vice President Gore suggesting how fearful Republicans are of his candidacy. More and more Democrats appear to see Gore as the heavyweight (no, I mean figuratively) and want him as their presidential nominee. But Gore seems to have more and more reasons why he doesn't want to enter the race.
Why not!? As Bob Herbert's New York Times interview with Gore this week shows, he doesn't seem to have a very good reason not to run. He's the superlative potential soldier who doesn't want to do basic training, the consummate pianist who doesn't like practicing, the long distance runner who won't do all that boring pre-marathon stretching.
Gore complains he lacks tolerance for the "triviality and artifice and nonsense" that it takes to run for president. And it's true, we've made running for office an endless exercise in foolishness that contradicts the very qualities we want in a sitting president. How about Wolf Blitzer asking the candidates in this week's debates to "raise their hands" like third grade children to signify whether they accept or reject HIS stark and dumbed-down version of some momentous policy choice? As if raising your hand yes or no had something to do with the kind of nuanced and mature judgment we expect from a president.
But what about it, Al? Yes, as with so many things in life, getting there means hard and sometimes absurd work -- the price that must be paid for securing success and power. You acknowledged to Bob Herbert that there is no other position "that even approaches that of president in terms of inherent ability to affect the course of events." But how then can you live with your green and good convictions and not run?
Or are you waiting for a popular draft? If so, plenty of Americans are willing drafters.
How many of us will sign this draft statement?
"RUN AL AND I WILL VOTE FOR YOU!"
For now, just send me a "comment" saying "I will sign the Gore draft pledge" with your name and let's see how much support among Huffington Post readers there is for a draft (please spare me the abusive Gore put-downs; we already know how YOU feel!)
But let's see whether we can't convince Al to go for and win a second time and for real what he already "won" once six years ago. All who agree, raise their hands!