Al Gore, Statesman?
6th May 2024
This year’s recipients were the usual mixed bag, but I want to focus specifically on Gore. This is what Gore’s citation says:
Al Gore is a former Vice President, United States Senator, and member of the House of Representatives. After winning the popular vote, he accepted the outcome of a disputed presidential election for the sake of our unity. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize jointly with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for his bold action on climate change.
Let’s dissect that: “After winning the popular vote…” This is completely irrelevant. The “popular vote” does not elect the president. The point is to emphasize what follows: “…he accepted the outcome of a disputed presidential election for the sake of our unity.” That is what Richard Nixon did, but not Al Gore. Gore went to court to challenge George W. Bush’s victory in Florida. After Gore lost in the trial court–correctly–four partisan Florida Supreme Court justices tried to steal the election for their man by purporting to award him Florida’s electoral votes. That triggered a further appeal. Gore fought for the presidency until the last dog was hung in the U.S. Supreme Court. And even thereafter, he claimed that he was the rightful winner, as have many Democrats ever since 2000.