Cross Posted @ Daily Kos

We are imploding.  The Democratic Party is imploding.  And if we intend to keep it up, we may as well anoint John McCain as the 44th President of the United States.

Cross Posted @ Daily Kos

I have previously written about the increasingly possible scenario of a brokered convention, but today, the mainstream media finally raised the specter of a potential draft of Al Gore at August's convention.  Likewise, South Carolina Congressman Jim Clyburn also hinted at the possibility that the Democratic nominee may not be someone currently running.  Now, I'm not going to jump any conclusions (or on any bandwagons for that matter), but I think the idea of a brokered convention is something that we as the Netroots should seriously start thinking about.

Yea, the title of the diary looks like it could be the subject line of a casino or gambling spam email that we all get on a regular basis, but this one is for real.  Look, I wasn't around in late 2004/early 2003 and thus had no idea what to expect here come primary season this year.  To put it lightly, some of us, myself included, could use a little break from candidate diaries, candidate promoting, and candidate critiquing (I'm trying to be nice).

In March of this year, Democracy for America conducted its first pulse poll.  Not surprisingly, Obama and Edwards split the vote, each finishing in the upper 20s.  Who came in third place, however, was the most interesting result of the poll - "Other" finished ahead of the likes of Hillary, Richardson, and Kucinich with 12.4%.  The vast majority of those votes I'm told were for Al Gore, but we all know that number is not a true representation of how many DFA members support a Gore candidacy, so Draft Gore organizers have started a petition to get him listed on the poll ballot alongside the other candidates.

In December of 2003, Al endorsed DFA favorite (and brother of DFAs Jim Dean) Howard Dean for President.  Especially since then, Gore has risen within the progressive community and many have hoped he'll decide to jump into the '08 race, especially with Hillary running away in the polls.  Al Gore has not ruled out a Presidential run and has specifically said that he probably wont under the current circumstances.  When asked under what circumstances he'd run, he replies something to the effect of "I don't know, but I'll know it when I see it."

Folks, it is August of 2007, and in my case, seven months before my state's primary.  Contrary to popular belief here on this site, you do not need to be supporting a candidate as of right now.  Why settle for 2nd best before the most qualified candidate has yet to make up his mind?  Gore has proven himself to be the most visionary leader in the field, was the first candidate right about Iraq, and has single handedly made global warming a national issue and legislative priority.

Including Gore in the DFA poll is but one step in "changing the circumstances."  It's about a much larger project to create a groundswell of support, both on the ground and on the 'net, so that it will be hard for Al to deny us a run.  Ballot drives are being conducted all across the country, including in New Hampshire where polls have shown he would win if he were on the ballot.

So sign the petition and let DFA know that you want to see the your candidate, the best candidate, included in their next pulse poll later this summer.

Please Sign!

Cross Posted at Daily Kos

I don't normally "take on" other bloggers (especially the likes of Chris) over what they say, but I feel so compelled to do so in this case that I just can't resist. Chris Bowers was wrong yesterady. Very wrong in fact. In his post entitled "Does This Mean Gore Is Definitely Out?" he quotes Al talking to a BBC reporter after being asked the '08 question yet again.

Bowers posts:

"I have no intention to run for president," Gore said in an interview conducted in Los Angeles and broadcast Thursday by the BBC.

"I can't imagine in any circumstance to run for office again," said the former Democratic vice president under then-president Bill Clinton.

From this little excerpt, Chris interprets a non-candidacy statement by Gore.  In fact, Bowers goes as far as saying:

In the past, there have been bad reports that didn't actually quote Gore. There have also been many times where Gore made comments that, while making it clear he was not leaning towards running, did not shut the door entirely. However, this time it is an actual quote from Gore, and I really don't see how it can be interpreted to mean anything except that he isn't running.

Here's why I take issue with what he thinks.  Gore has been saying virtually the same thing for months upon months now!  Why all of a sudden does Bowers think this time when he says it, Gore means he's not running?  

February 9, 2007:

"I don't have plans to be a candidate again and though I haven't... completely ruled out any possibility of running at some point in the future I don't expect to and cannot perceive circumstances in which I would."

February 1, 2007:

"I can't imagine any circumstances in which I would become a candidate again."

January 2007:

"I'm not planning on running for president again."

In an interview with Gore's son, December 14, 2006:

So he's definitely not running?

"Well, I guess I have to add his addendum. I think the way he always says it is, 'I don't see any circumstances under which I would run for president.'"

September 10, 2006:

"I haven't completely ruled out running for president again in the future but I don't expect to."

C'mon Chris, you're better than this.  Clearly, (there is no question in my mind actually) the "I don't see any circumstances where I would run" bit is scripted and has been for a long time.  Even his son knows it by heart!  Over and over and over again, Al has said nearly the same exact thing.  So my question is, what makes you think that this time it means he's not running?

Now, does this mean he is leaning towards not running?  Maybe.  But to say that he has completely closed the door on a 2008 candidacy is ridiculous - it is as much open now, if not more open, than it was a year ago at this time when he was saying the same thing.

Chris, do you think he's calling Democratic insiders and fund-raisers just for hoots and giggles?  From the New York Observer just a few days ago:

According to one influential Democratic insider, close associates of the former Vice President have communicated to him and other prominent fund-raisers who are uncommitted to the other '08 candidates that Mr. Gore will consider entering the race--if an opening presents itself--in September.

When the Observer article was brought to Al's attention today he did little to dispel what it said, instead repeating his catchphrase, "I have no intention of running for president again and I'm involved in a different kind of campaign."  "I have no plans to run" now does not mean "I'm not running."  "I can't foresee any circumstances right now" does not mean "I'm not running."  Some may accuse me of clenching at straws here, but if he really wanted to rule out an '08 run, he knows the magical words he has to say, and it's very clear he has specifically chosen not to say them.

Likewise, there are rumors that Gore personally called a high-profile New Hampshire Democrat earlier this month.  It would be a pretty big coincidence if it has nothing to do with a potential run.  Also, he has done nothing to dissuade a draft movement like he did in 2002.

Chris, I've also started to wonder if you even looked at the actual BBC interview at all.  In it, after the part that you quote, he says, "I haven't 100% ruled out using some other venue in the future [to further his fight against global warming]."  Venue of course meaning the Presidency (he's not gonna run for Congress folks).

Al Gore knows the magic words he has to say to make it clear that he is not running for President.  It's not terribly hard to say "I've decided that I will not be a candidate for President in 2008."  None of this "I have no plans to" or "I can't foresee any circumstances" - Gore knows what he has to say if he doesn't want to run.  As lightyearsfromhome rightfully points out in the comments section of Bowers' post, Al did just that in 2003.  Then he said:

"I've decided that I will not be a candidate for president in 2004," Gore told Lesley Stahl. " I personally have the energy and drive and ambition to make another campaign, but I don't think that it's the right thing for me to do."

It's not a coincidence he has not said the same thing this time around for crying out loud.  In fact, I am sure in my heart of hearts that Al is seriously considering running.  I added emphasis for those nay-sayers who constantly, without reason or evidence, say Gore does not want to be President. If you delve into the 2003 article where he explicitly says he's not running, you'll also find his reasoning:

"Because I have run for president twice before and because a race this time around will focus on a Bush-Gore rematch, I felt that the focus on that race would inevitably have been more on the past than it should've been when all races should be focused on the future."

Barring some Constitutional amendment that extends Presidential terms, this excuse is no longer valid.  2008 will be a race that will determine the future of not only the United States, but the world as we know it.  Al Gore knows this and very much understands its implications.  If he feels that he is the best one suited to lead us, and feels that he can win, he will enter this race.

Bloggers for Gore

Cross Posted at Daily Kos.

The effort to get Al Gore into the 2008 race is heating up. Secured potential campaign website? Check. A nascent effort to draft him made up of former advisers and big money names? Check. Unprecedented netroots support? Check. Subtle hints that he is seriously considering entering? Check.

Today I introduce Bloggers for Gore, a group dedicated to bringing attention to Gore's potential candidacy.  It will hopefully be used as a forum and email tool to get breaking news and alerts out for bloggers to write about, keep the MM in check, get Gore-related diaries on the recommended lists, and funnel traffic to other Gore-related websites.

Most importantly though, should Gore run, it will act as yet another cog that will be ready and in place for him to do whatever he wants with.  Yes, it will be fantastic (f'ing fantastic at that) should he throw his hat in the ring, but we then have to make sure he wins the nomination - some kind of infrastructure needs to be there for him.

With that being said, join Bloggers for Gore.

Note: I apologize for the brevity of the diary.

UPDATE: As per the suggestions of a few people (and after checking it out myself), I've moved the group over to Google and have adjusted the links in the diary.

Cross posted at Daily Kos

For those who have read any of my comments or diaries on 2008 know that I'm 100% behind Al Gore until he absolutely, completely, and explicitly rules out a White House bid.  Well, for the first time, as of about half an hour ago, I'm starting to think he is seriously going to be forced to think about running.

For those who have read any of my comments or diaries on 2008 know that I'm 100% behind Al Gore until he absolutely, completely, and explicitly rules out a White House bid. Well, for the first time, as of about half an hour ago, I'm starting to think he is seriously going to be forced to think about running.

This is the title I stumbled upon while glimpsing over the Yahoo! News headlines: Supporters push Gore to run in 2008.  I immediately thought awesome...about damn time the mainstream media picked up on Gore's viability as a candidate.  But then I read on:

His top policy adviser from his 2000 presidential campaign and other key supporters met Thursday in Boston to mull a potential Gore campaign. The participants and Gore's Nashville office both said Gore, who is in London, is not involved.

Wow.  Goremania is no longer a blogosphere phenomena - his own 2000 staffers are taking this very seriously and are going to push him hard to run.  Continuing...

Chris Mackin, a Boston consultant and Gore supporter, called it "an early stage conversation." But he added: "We're very serious about exploring this."

"Very serious" were his exact words.  Very serious.  I assume this was a meeting of close Gore friends/advisers/confidants...these aren't Kossacks who are saying we're "very serious," these are people who have known Gore and were right there with him in 2000.  This is indeed the start of something very serious.  But perhaps most telling is this final excerpt:

"He certainly has the right political climate. How many political candidates are being nominated for Nobel prizes and winning Oscars?" said Dylan Malone, co-founder of AlGore.org and organizer of a political action committee trying to draft Gore.

In 2002, Gore asked Malone to stop a draft effort he had begun; Malone did. Malone started up again and, so far, Gore hasn't waved him off.

Gore gave this Malone guy two years (depending on when in 2002) notice that he wasn't running, and here we are, less than a year from the first state's caucuses, and Gore has not shut this guy down.  Perhaps it's more than just coincidence that Al has secured the domain algore.com?"

For the first time, I'm starting to feel like this is gonna happen - buckle your seat belts folks, this might turn real exciting.

Cross Posted at Daily Kos

In what is little more than a promotional diary, I just wanted to let NY-19 MyDD readers (and those interested outside the district) know that I've begun penning a blog that follows the new congressional career of John Hall. I'm a twelve year resident of the district and hope to offer some unique insight on Hall's tenure.