the rix mix

Al Gore's appearance with Letterman on Thursday (he was the only guest) reminded me a little of when Bob Dole made the rounds of talk shows after his defeat by Clinton in '96, & everyone was saying, "Who is this funny guy? Where was he during the campaign?" Al was never the stiff he was made out to be by MSM & comics, or a rabid leftist. It's no stretch to imagine President Gore ordering our armed forces to find bin Laden, & to bring down the Taliban government it that's what it took. Al is a wonk only by contrast with the present White House occupant, meaning Al is intellectually curious & actually reads & asks questions, learns & grows. He does have a discursive speaking style, but it comes from his reaching for the best information. W believes it's endearing to hear the president fumble & stumble through the vast, empty Texas landscape of his brain, chasing after tumbleweeds of factoids & correct pronunciations & never catching them. & he is endearing & reassuring to his remaining small core of misguided, mistaken, or utterly ignorant supporters. Al Gore is only 59 years old. He probably doesn't even want to be president anymore - the primary campaign rather the challenges of the general election & Oval Office dissuading him. Certainly, Al looks without fear at the Repug candidates - the front runners promoting their embraces of no less than six of the Seven Deadly Sins as either virtues or of no consequence.

(Note to myself: Today is John Wayne's 100th birthday.)