Gore in 2008

Despite the fact that we haven't even made it through the 2006 election yet, the speculation over who is going to run for President in 2008 has been rampant. One of the big names that has many on the left in a frenzy is Al Gore, who continues to deny that he is going to run in 2008 despite the recent attention, and all but swore off a run on national television earlier this week.

People can change their minds, however, and it would not completely surprise me if Gore ran in 2008. This article by David Shribman goes through a litany of supposed advantages that he has over the rest of the Democratic field in 2008, and I tend to agree with many of them. Gore is seen by many on the left as an elder statesman, a position that the Democratic Party usually doesn't allow failed Presidential contenders to occupy (think about what happened to Mondale and Dukakis...generally relegated to the political wilderness after they lost).

Of course, it's different with Gore. He acted in a statesmanlike way after he lost in 2000, disappearing into the wilds and collecting his thoughts. He avoided criticising the President at first, and didn't do so until Bush's actions made it look less like sour grapes. And he's re-emerged as the political voice for the environmentalists in the Democratic Party. Comparisons with Nixon are being made, and of course we all know how well things worked out for Tricky Dick.

I think that Gore will end up running. He can't look too eager, but this is a man who felt that he was destined to someday be President. Now, his Party may well come to him on it's knees, begging him to prevent Hillary Clinton from being nominated. I don't see Gore turning down the offer if his intel suggested that he would win the nomination. Forget about Mark Warner, Evan Bayh, the pitiful John Kerry, Chris Dodd, the comic run of Joe Biden, the overeager John Edwards, Wesley Clark, Bill Richardson, Tom Vilsack, Russ Feingold, or anybody else who has been mentioned. If Gore runs, this will be all about Al v. Hillary. I think Al would win that fight, and I think he would win the election as well. I will talk much more about this over the next couple of years, I'm sure. For now, that's my projection. Only time will tell if I am correct.