Gore says no to bid in 2004
Posted on 12/16/2002 1:58:51 AM PST by MeekOneGOP
Gore says no to bid in 2004
Ex-VP says he probably won't have another chance at White House
12/16/2002
WASHINGTON - Former Vice President Al Gore threw the Democratic presidential race wide open Sunday night, announcing he won't run in 2004 and noting that many Democrats didn't want to see him in a rematch with President Bush.
"I personally have the energy and drive and ambition to make another campaign, but I don't think it's the right thing for me to do," said Mr. Gore, who in 2000 lost one of the nation's closest presidential races. He said he was "sensitive" to the view of many Democrats who felt "I don't want to go through that again."
His announcement, in an interview on CBS' 60 Minutes, seems certain to bring his 2000 running mate, Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, into the Democratic field and increases the likelihood that Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota will run, analysts said.
Gov. Howard Dean of Vermont has already said he plans to run. Outgoing House Democratic leader Dick Gephardt of Missouri, Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina and Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts are considered likely candidates, and others may also enter.
Mr. Gore's announcement came several weeks before the year-end deadline he had set for himself and produced a range of reactions from Democratic leaders, analysts and candidates weighing a race against Mr. Bush.
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Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia's Center for Politics, said it transforms the Democratic race from one in which the candidates would each be seeking to topple Mr. Gore to one "that will be almost completely undefined within the Democratic Party."
Stuart Rothenberg, a political analyst and publisher of The Rothenberg Political Report, said the decision will produce "a collective sigh of relief from Democratic operatives."
"They just thought he was a loser," Mr. Rothenberg said. "They couldn't imagine him beating George W. Bush, but they understood that the [presidential nominating] calendar was an asset for him and he could have been the nominee."
Similarly, the announcement produced some disappointment among Republicans who had hoped for a Bush-Gore rematch.
"If he had gotten the nomination, that would have been a bounty for Bush beyond his wildest dreams," Texas GOP strategist Dave Beckwith said. "It appears that Bush will not be lucky enough to have him again."
On the Democratic side, former President Bill Clinton issued a statement saying: "Al Gore was the best vice president America ever had. He would have been a fine president had history taken a different course two years ago."
Several likely Democratic candidates also issued statements praising Mr. Gore. Mr. Dean called it "sort of a bittersweet day," noting that "Al Gore faced a very difficult decision and he exhibited some real courage in making the decision he did."
Similarly, Mr. Kerry said, "I know this was a very difficult and personal decision for Al Gore and his family and I respect the choice he has made."
Though Mr. Gore said that, as a result of his decision, "Lieberman will now run," an aide to the senator said that he had no immediate comment. The Connecticut senator has said he would only run if Mr. Gore bowed out.
In explaining his decision, Mr. Gore indicated that he understood the widespread concern his potential candidacy had raised within the Democratic Party.
While he said he believed he could defeat Mr. Bush because his economic policies "do not work," he acknowledged that the campaign he narrowly lost when the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Mr. Bush's 537-vote margin in Florida "was an extremely difficult one."
"And while I have the energy and drive to go out there and do it again, I think there are a lot of people within the Democratic Party who felt exhausted by that, who felt like, OK, 'I don't want to go through that again,' " he said. "And I'm frankly sensitive to that, to that feeling."
He also said that a rematch "would inevitably involve a focus on the past that would in some measure distract from the focus on the future that I think all campaigns have to be about."
He said he understands that, by not running in 2004, "it probably means I will never have another opportunity to run for president." But he said that he plans to remain politically active and that "there are many other exciting ways to serve."
The degree to which Mr. Gore would have dominated the opening stages of the Democratic race has been reflected in polls showing him far ahead of his possible rivals. Such polls, taken well before the public focuses on an election, often reflect the degree to which the candidates are known.
The same polls also showed him running well behind Mr. Bush.
His dominant position within the party was also reflected in a series of polls that were taken recently in states with early nominating contests and released last week by The Hotline, which provides a daily summary of political news.
The polls showed Mr. Gore leading by a 2-to-1 ratio over his closest rival in Iowa and by 5-to-1 in South Carolina.
But in New Hampshire, which holds the first primary eight days after the Iowa caucuses, Mr. Gore trailed Mr. Kerry, who may have been helped because he announced the formation of an exploratory committee just before the surveys were taken.
Still, analysts predicted that Mr. Gore would have faced a stiff challenge from Mr. Gephardt in Iowa, where the Missouri Democrat won the 1988 caucuses, and from Mr. Kerry in New Hampshire.
"They all had their places picked out where they thought they could beat Gore, and they probably could have," Mr. Sabato said. "I think he was ripe for the plucking."
Without Mr. Gore in the race, the polls showed Mr. Gephardt was the leader in Iowa, Mr. Kerry in New Hampshire and the race in South Carolina was muddled.
Iowa Democrats said that, without Mr. Gore in the race, Mr. Gephardt will likely gain most of the backing of the state's politically influential unions. But they predicted that Mr. Daschle, from neighboring South Dakota, would also be a contender if he runs.
"You're going to see Gephardt and Daschle probably be front-runners because of their proximity to Iowa and the people here. The issue is probably going to be who comes in third," said Rob Tully, a former Iowa Democratic chairman who backs Mr. Edwards.
Mr. Henderson, who is not committed in the race, said that Mr. Kerry, who came in second behind Mr. Gephardt in the Iowa poll, could also be a player in the state. "He has picked up some supporters who are absolutely committed to him," he said.
And he noted that Mr. Dean "is trying to follow the Jimmy Carter model" by spending more time in the state than his rivals. "He's leaving office, so he'll be available to campaign full time," Mr. Henderson said.
The poll showed that Mr. Lieberman would inherit much of Mr. Gore's Iowa support.
One key to the race, longtime Democratic strategist Mark Siegel said, is that many states are planning to take advantage of a change in party rules that allows them to move their primaries into February, right after Iowa and New Hampshire. He said that will increase pressure on them to raise enough money to compete on TV.
While other candidates might be tempted to enter now, he said, "the calendar is very difficult and the new rules make it very difficult for a dark horse candidate to win." He predicted that Mr. Gephardt, Mr. Lieberman and Mr. Kerry would have the best chance of raising enough money to compete.
Mr. Gore's decision means that he will not attempt to emulate Andrew Jackson and Grover Cleveland, who won the White House four years after they lost the presidency on electoral votes despite winning the most popular votes.
But the last three candidates who ran four years after losing - William Jennings Bryan, Thomas E. Dewey and Adlai E. Stevenson - also lost the rematches.
Mr. Sabato speculated that may have influenced Mr. Gore.
"In the end, he decided to go out as the popular vote winner in 2000, someone who's going to look pretty good, rather than someone who might have gone out as an ignominious loser the second or third time," the Virginia professor said.
E-mail cleubsdorf@dallasnews.com
Good point. But in Algore's case I hope he doesn't shut up since it would help publicize the book. Keep blabbering Al!
Boy it really is.... and all he left with just doing bad imitations of Trent Lott on SNL (Sorry Not Laughing). I mean maybe after that he can go back to a State House seat in some state that would have him... but his role as a serious politician who can work with people and solve issues on a national level is officially over.
Actually, algore has been spared this humiliation...
What you don't have, you can't lose.
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