The Political Universe 12.12.06

Posted by Jason Easley on 12.12.2006

Could Al Gore win an Oscar and run for President? Yep, the Al Gore rumors are back. I'll take a look at Al Gore version 2.0, and give you my opinion on whether he could be president. Plus, the Democrats have announced that they are eliminating pork spending from the 2007 budget, but this bit of fiscal sanity could come at a high price. All this and more awaits you in the Tuesday edition of the column.

We are looking for a few good writers

The search for new writers continues. I still need someone to write a Wednesday news column. There is no limit on the number of opinion columnists we can add, but I am looking for writers who have a different opinion or idea for a column. You can get all the details right here.

First an Oscar then the presidency for Al Gore?

I have to admit that I want Al Gore to run for president again. It would be fun to watch him go up against Hillary Clinton. Plus, there are many people out there who would see a Gore candidacy as a chance to right what they view as the "wrong" outcome of the 2000 election. Currently Gore is involved in a furious national campaign to get his film An Inconvenient Truth the Oscar for best documentary. We have long been told that the real Al Gore is not the dull stiff who would always freeze up in front of television cameras. People who know Gore, or met him outside of the media spotlight, spoke highly of his sense of humor and personality.

It is ironic that in some ways losing the 2000 election was the best thing ever to happen to him. Gore is like a man freed of the expectations and burdens of politics. He is doing what he loves and in interview after interview Gore demonstrates something he never showed as either Vice President or a presidential candidate, a personality. Gore has been warm and funny, whether it is on Saturday Night Live, Oprah, or The Tonight Show. Gore is always asked if he will ever run for president again, but his answer lately has been less than a firm denial of interest.

"I am not planning to run for president again," Gore said last week. Gore has regularly stated that his focus is on raising public awareness about global warming, but then, he added, "I haven't completely ruled it out." The last part of that statement makes him the biggest political wildcard in either party for 2008. Hillary Clinton is the frontrunner, but she is certainly not a popular frontrunner, and she comes with many limitations which I discussed last week in this column. Sen. Barack Obama is the rising star of the Democratic Party and a hot name in many circles, but Obama is very inexperienced, and no one is sure how he would hold up in a national campaign.

All of this is what makes Al Gore an intriguing candidate. Unlike most losers of previous presidential elections, Gore can argue that he did not really lose in 2000. Gore has gained fame outside of politics for his movie, and even more important than the increased fame is the increased personal wealth that has come from no longer being a public servant. Gore has been a longtime advisor to Google and is on the board of directors at Apple Computers. It is estimated that Gore could spend $50 million of his own money on a presidential campaign.

Both Obama and Clinton have not officially announced that they are running, but they have been courting party activists, and building their organizations. Gore has shown no signs of building any sort of campaign organization, but this does not mean that he is definitely out. Many Democratic insiders believe that Gore could be convinced to enter the race, once the field of Democratic contenders shakes itself out. I think that Gore would enter the race if it looked like the frontrunner was vulnerable, or if it looked like he or she was a sure loser in November.

A general election campaign that featured John McCain and Al Gore might be one that would involve a discussion of the issues. Gore has done nothing to harm his credibility with many voters since 2000. He was opposed to the Iraq war from the beginning, and his stance on global warming is also the popular one among a majority of voters. Gore would be a formidable and tough candidate, especially for the inexperienced and polarizing Clinton. My gut tells me that if Obama was the frontrunner, Gore would not run.

From a logical point of view, it is unlikely that Gore will run. It would take a scenario where Gore was approached by some party leaders and asked to run. I am fairly certain that he will not jump into the race on his own. Gore has had a long career in public service and I really do believe that part of him wants to do something different, but that old political itch does not go away very easily. I'll bet thoughts of being president still creep into his mind. His decision may come down to whether or not he gives in and scratches that itch.

Democrats to remove pork from spending bills

When the Democrats take control of Congress next month, they plan on removing money earmarked for many legislators' pet projects back home. "There will be no congressional earmarks," Rep. David Obey, (D-WI), and Sen. Robert Byrd, (D-WV), said in a statement announcing their plans. Earmarks are congressionally mandated projects that are not included in the president's spending proposals. The earmarks are more commonly called pork. It is called pork because like the food the spending is low on substance and high in fat.

The Senators' plans were endorsed by incoming Speaker Nancy Pelosi, (D-CA), and soon-to-be Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, (D-NV). This is a move that is certain to be unpopular with members of Congress, but it may turn out to be a politically savvy step directed at voters who were frustrated with Congressional spending that had gotten out of control. The number of pork projects exploded while the Republicans were in control of Congress, but the Democrats will inherit control of a Congress that has not passed a single spending bill for next year.

The Democrats faced the huge problem either going through the tedious budget process for each and every bill, or as they have chosen, they could pass one large spending bill that will cover everything. If they chose to go through the budget step by step, it could take up a great deal of time and derail other parts of their agenda. Surprisingly, the bill should see little opposition from Congressional Republicans and the White House.

White House Budget Director David Portman did express disappointment at the Democrats announcement. "There are still more than nine months remaining in the fiscal year, and we believe we should be working on the remaining bills to achieve the best results possible for the American people," he said. He also expressed that the administration wants to "maintain fiscal discipline and avoid gimmicks and unwarranted emergency spending." The Democrats are planning to shift some of the earmarked money away from pork and into programs that they feel the Bush budget under funded, such as health research, education, and grants to local law enforcement agencies.

It isn't clear how much money would be shifted. Federal grants to housing transportation and levees would still be funded, but the administration will have final say on pools of money that Congress usually divides up for specific projects. Obey and Byrd said their plan "provides the administration far too much latitude in spending the people's money. But that is a temporary price that we will pay" to be able to devote time and energy to Bush's Iraq funding request and next year's budget. I agree that this arrangement does give the president too much power in the budget process, but the alternative would be a Congress bogged down by a budget debate. For one year, I think this is acceptable.

The problem is that the White House could use this process to reward their friends and punish their critics. There is also nothing stopping the Republicans who have their pork projects cut from lobbying the president to have their pet projects restored. I really dislike the idea of any president, Democrat or Republican, having this much authority over spending, but sometimes one has to make the best out of a tough spot. There could be some funny business in the 2007 budget, but the Democrats will make their mark on 2008 funding bills. Hopefully this is a first step towards restoring some sanity to the federal budget and spending.

Be sure to check out….

Dan Martin writes a heck of a column about possible market solutions to poverty. I would suggest as a follow up that the market idea be applied to something like the health care crisis or the Bush Social Security plan to demonstrate how the conservative idea of running the government like a business is really a recipe for failure. By the way, why does everyone think I am such a taskmaster? Is it because I hold the zany belief that writers should actually write? Honestly, you would think that I threaten to fire people not named Crow all the time.

Joe Rivett is a man whose columns I always enjoy. I always assume that everyone reads Joe, but in case you have been living under a rock or are new to 411, go check out The Rivett Report.

Mark Radulich gives us a run down of his blog talk radio show. I think there was supposed to be a link to his show on the page, but it didn't format correctly, so here it is. You can read the rundown right here. My problem is that I go out to watch the Steelers on Sundays and I am not usually home to catch his show live. Once football season is over, you will have 11 live listeners, Mark.

My favorite Canadian, well besides Mario Lemieux and Sidney Crosby, is Matthew D.S. Please read his The Weekly Monitor. FYI Matt, that town that wanted to mandate gun ownership is right here in my home county Indiana County, PA.

We have reached the end of yet another Tuesday column. Come on back on Friday when I will have more political news for you.

"It is in book form and entitled, 'The Way Forward -- A New Approach,' a stark contrast from the book Bush had been operating from, 'Deeper and Deeper into the Hole That I Myself Have Dug.'" --Jon Stewart, on the Iraq Study Group report.

"Vice President Dick Cheney has a gay daughter, Mary. Well, she's pregnant. Wow, that's going to be a shotgun wedding. Apparently, it all began with a romantic evening at home, watching a DVD of 'Xena: Warrior Princess. I don't think President Bush understands these things. When they told President Bush that Dick Cheney's gay daughter was pregnant, he said, 'It's a Christmas miracle.'" --Jay Leno

"Yesterday, Defense Secretary nominee Robert Gates went before the Senate Armed Service Committee. To win his confirmation, he sought a new approach to impress the senators [on screen: Gates saying he does not believe the U.S. is winning the war in Iraq]. Woah. A two-word honest answer. ... You had us at 'We're losing.'" --Jon Stewart