 |
|
 |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The new Al GoreBy Bruce Morton/CNN
October 15, 1999 WASHINGTON -- You remember the old Al Gore. Made a lump of coal look twitchy. For instance, there was his version of the Macarena at the 1996 Democratic convention, where the vice president stood stock still at the podium. Well, to paraphrase Bob Dylan, the Gore, he is a-changin'. The new Gore reads to kids. The new Gore avoids suits, and lecterns. The new Al Gore knows how to strut at the head of the parade. You might even say, as his wife has said, he's sexy. The new Gore emphasizes his Tennessee roots by moving his national campaign headquarters back to the state he represented in the Senate. But the zingiest, swingiest, grooviest Gore yet was the guy at the AFL-CIO convention this week who bounded and ran around the convention floor shaking hands and pounded backs after the union federation endorsed him. If there was a tall building at the convention, he'd have leaped it at a single bound. What's he on, do you suppose -- essence of endorsement? Gore's speaking style has perked up a bit as well. "Are we going to let the Republicans make a right wing U-turn back to the past, or will we decide the right course is to stay and fight? When they try to privatize Social Security, what is right? Stay and fight!" Gore enthusiastically said to the AFL-CIO members. The question is, do makeovers work? "I think for a while the voters will be skeptical. I think political commentators will note the contrast. If he keeps it up for a while, if he seems like a fighter, if he seems like a winner, I think it'll wear pretty well on the public," said CNN political analyst Stuart Rothenberg. It's just like the old first-grade reading lesson: See Gore. See Gore run. |
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MORE STORIES:Friday, October 15, 1999
• The new Al Gore • Senate to debate proposed soft money ban • Bradley raises slightly more money than Gore • Two tribal officials plead guilty to campaign finance charges • President honors agents who protect him • Senator accuses HUD of manipulating investigation • Former Nixon adviser dies of cancer • Drug policy director angered by suggestion of lack of cooperation • Clinton calls Senate cuts 'unconscionable' | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
