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Al Gore was in Washington, DC this week addressing the students of George Washington University regarding his latest book, "Assault On Reason". (This is Al's fifth book which is one more than George W. Bush owns and two more than he has read.) One look at the SRO crowd packing Lisner Auditorium and you come away with a startling discovery: Al Gore is the hottest thing in politics (Fred Dalton Thompson notwithstanding).
Free of the consultants that crippled his run for president in 2000, Al has found his voice. Now that he is wearing a roomier pair of pants he has space for the all the intelligence that was squeezed out of the khakis he wore the last time. Should he decide to run (50-50 at this point) he will raise the level of discourse to a level befitting an American Presidential election. A sure road to disaster.
Sadly, even if Al gets nominated, he has virtually no shot to be elected. Middle America has shown time and time again that it has no love for candidates with brains. Exhibit A, of course, is the current occupant of 1600. Quod erat demonstrandum. If George W. is the benchmark for intellect in America, there is a real possibility that Barbaro (had he not died) could have been elected Governor of Kentucky.
Karl Rove sees Al Gore as a dream candidate. The easiest politician to defeat is someone that actually stands for something and has been foolish enough to write it down. Rove might have trouble with Obama. His record is too thin to eviscerate. Gore, on the other hand, is a political assassin dream. He admits to having read Gibbon's The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire (GWB is waiting for the movie). He can discuss Galbraith, Mill and McLuhan (George understands them to be the heart of the Texas Rangers batting order). When challenged to "wax philosophically" Mr. Bush seems likely to reach for the Simonize. In an era of sound bites and catch-phrases, a candidate with intellectual credentials is a dead duck.
Recent examples abound. Disregarding the obsequious adoration being heaped on Ronald Reagan especially since his death, no one ever accused "The Great Communicator" of communicating any deep thoughts. Nevertheless, he defeated Jimmy Carter, himself a student of nuclear engineering, who was no match for a man who started every response with, "Well...".
Face it, Nebraska thinks that "elite" is a dirty word. "Intellectual" is a non-starter. Middle America wants the common touch. They want a down-to-earth guy (and it better be a guy's guy) who thinks like them. OK, hold that thought. Why would you ever vote for someone that thinks a perfect evening's entertainment is a six-pack of Coors and reruns of American Idol and Survivor, Fiji? What ever happened to America's Best and Brightest? Have they really been replaced by Dumb and Dumber?
America voted for George W. Bush because he didn't threaten anyone's sense of self. Eastern "intellectuals" like John Kerry (if Kerry is an intellectual, I'm Walter Winchell) appear smug to farmers in Missouri. Candidates from the East Coast act as if they know what's best for America and you're a hayseed. George Bush makes everyone around him feel smarter. He looks a little lost; like you or I would be. His language (whatever language he speaks) isn't polished. He has made being ordinary into a trademark. When he enters a room, the band should forget "Hail to the Chief" and strike up "Ode For the Common Man".
I have an idea! How about we nominate a candidate with an IQ in triple digits? How about we choose for the most important job in the world, a person who has more upstairs than a great haircut (John Edwards notwithstanding)? We're talking about a President who will not only have to lead America through a truly perilous time but will have to undo all of the harm done by Clueless George in the last eight years. It is imperative that, when someone says "boob" we immediately think of breasts rather than our Commander in Chief. Let's draft Al Gore for President. He's tan, refreshed and ready...and he has clearly had lunch!
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