Gore Had A Persona Problem

WASHINGTON -- Vice President Al Gore will have a lot of "what ifs" to contemplate in the days ahead.

Monday morning quarterbacking is always painful especially in recalling missed opportunities. The saddest part of all, of course is what might have been. If Gore's opponent had won by a landslide, it would be a different story and easier for the loser to take. But it has to hurt more for the vice president to realize that he beat Texas Gov. George W. Bush in the popular vote and missed out on the Electoral College by only one vote. Painful, indeed.

In a world where winning is everything, it doesn't seem to bother Bush that he has the dubious distinction of being the only president in history to be chosen by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Looking back, it seems to me that Gore made a tactical mistake by not having President Clinton campaign for him. Controversial as Clinton may have been, he knows how to fire up a crowd and he loves campaigning. The Gore campaign needed that go-go zest on the hustings that the charismatic Clinton could provide. It was a calculated risk, but he should have gone for it, especially since the president was anxious to do his part.

I can recall presidents who hardly lifted a finger to help their vice presidents succeed them. For example, Dwight D. Eisenhower did nothing to help Vice President Richard m. Nixon in 1960. And Lyndon B. Johnson hardly exerted for Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey in 1968.

Gore also had to contend with spoiler Ralph Nader, who creamed off 98,000 votes in Florida, most of which would have gone to the vice president. Nader is unrepentant.

The three debates also harmed Gore's campaign. He appeared arrogant and aggressive, bringing on a backlash of sympathy for Bush, who was out of his element. Bush's inept performances were deemed acceptable because his savvy public relations staff was smart enough to keep public expectations so low.

Gore was superior in every way but his abrasive style turned people off. It all reminded me of a recitation years ago that went something like this: "I do not like thee, Dr. Fell. The reason why I cannot tell but this I know and know it well, I do not like thee, Dr. Fell."

That's an unfair assessment of Gore because there is much to commend him. Even his alleged flaws are attractive characteristics to many people. For example, he is faulted as a disciplined man who held his emotions and personal feelings in check. You could use the same words and call it praise.

But there should be no debate about his graceful concession speech. His remarks set the right tone to end this historic presidential election -- he departed with no hint of rancor or recrimination. It was classy all the way. That was the real Al Gore.

The vice president inexplicably pulled his punches when he should have been bragging about the eight years of Clinton-Gore prosperity, and other domestic legislative accomplishments.

Somewhere along the way, Gore lost confidence in himself and started taking advice from well-intentioned people who didn't know what they were talking about. Gore was spooked from being himself. He started down the road of repackaging his personality, blocking people from seeing the truly sincere man that he is. He was constantly being advised to change his attire and his persona. The real Al Gore did not stand up until too late in the game when he realized he could be himself.

It's incredible that Gore failed to point the finger at the rejectionist Republican-led Congress that failed to pass the patients' bill of rights or a $1 increase in the minimum wage over two years. The same Congress also failed to rebuild or repair thousands of the nation's schools that are falling apart.

In many ways, the media were much harder on Gore, exaggerating some of his alleged exaggerations. He did not invent the Internet and didn't say he did so. But he was the Paul Revere of the information superhighway and the guiding light to connecting the nation's public schools to the Internet.

It's a sad truth about the 2000 election campaign that personality played such a big role because there were no overarching issues that had the voters riled up or even uplifted. What Gore needed was a little bit of luck and it was not there for him.

Bush's flaws were apparent early in the campaign. His mangling of the English language was something to behold. Quotations that boggled the mind such as: "I will have a foreign-handed foreign policy."

Or, "We cannot let terrorists and rogue nations hold this nation hostile or hold our allies hostile." Reporters have collected volumes of his malapropisms, but they were remiss in showing that he lacked a resume in public service.

But he has gotten away with a lot, more than most presidential candidates who have been put under a microscope. He has yet to produce his medical and military records. In other words, the press gave him a free ride.

He has torn a page out of Ronald Reagan's books: Act presidential and let others do the thinking and the work. It works, I assure you.

After all, he has gotten by so far on an amiable, detached personality.

But is that all there is? We will soon find out.