Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Gore and Edwards Cowards?

are john edwards and al gore simply cowards? or do they have a strategic purpose for staying out of the muck? or are they just being wise?
i think there is a larger strategy at play here and i think it could benefit obama. this is my hunch. only a hunch. but i think they'll both announce support for obama at a strategic time. this could be right after pennsylvania. i doubt it would be before.
they must be interested in seeing what kind of new voters obama picks up in a territory that clearly is not his. they must be interested in seeing how he deals with each new accusation that comes his way.
their support could follow north carolina and indiana, depending how much more of the kitchen sink is coming. if the clintons unload, then perhaps the big guys will step in sooner.
on jay leno, edwards suggested that obama is the exciting candidate, able to energize people but he said he liked clinton as well.
gore has been really busy trying to save the planet so perhaps he's just really busy. perhaps he doesn't want to wield his influence? this could be the case if he supports clinton. maybe he doesn't want to discourage new voters. nah.

this article seems to suggest that gore is not interested in being the heavyweight:
Of the prominent, still-uncommitted Democrats, Mr. Gore is probably in the best position to call for cessation of hostilities, if not actually to deliver a deathblow to the wounded-but-potent Clinton campaign.

Uniquely among the fraternity of failed Democratic nominees, Mr. Gore has regained his standing within the party, and then some. His early opposition to the war in Iraq and tireless advocacy for combating global warming—a cause he basically personifies—made him a liberal supernova. He won an Oscar, an Emmy, a Nobel Peace Prize. He shed his suit and tie, started dressing in black shirts and jackets and cowboy boots, and took a job with Apple. His resistance to impassioned pleas leading up to the elections in 2004 and 2008 to run again only further cemented his reputation among Democrats as the unflappable Goracle.

Mr. Gore declined, through a spokeswoman, to comment for this article.

“There is no Democrat who can dictate the nominee,” said Robert Zimmerman, a former fund-raiser close to Mr. Gore who is now supporting Mrs. Clinton. “However, Al Gore can play a unique role in uniting the party and bringing an end to the fighting after the primary and caucuses have concluded.”

“Certainly, if anybody has earned the right to do whatever he wants in political life after 2000, he certainly has earned that right,” said Alan Kessler, a former Gore fund-raiser who is supporting Mrs. Clinton for president. He added that an endorsement “might be perceived as a little bit unfair for him to do, because he is so influential.” more