Rated G For Gore

It's one thing for the sitting vice president to throw out a trial balloon and consider running for the Oval Office.  But for the guy that lost (and won, and then lost for winning) 15 years ago, the notion that Al Gore has any shot is just ridiculous.

Supporters of Al Gore have begun a round of conversations among themselves and with the former vice president about his running for president in 2016, the latest sign that top Democrats have serious doubts that Hillary Clinton is a sure thing.

Gore, 67, won the popular vote in the 2000 election and has been mentioned as a possible candidate in every contested Democratic primary since then. He instead spent much of the 2000s focused on environmental campaigning and business ventures. He has largely slipped out of public view in more recent years.

But in recent days, “they’re getting the old gang together,” a senior Democrat told BuzzFeed News.

“They’re figuring out if there’s a path financially and politically,” the Democrat said. “It feels more real than it has in the past months.”

The senior Democrat and other sources cautioned not to overstate Gore’s interest. He has not made any formal or informal moves toward running, or even met with his political advisers about a potential run.

A member of Gore’s inner circle asked to be quoted “pouring lukewarm water” — not, note, cold water — on the chatter.

Ugh.

No, no, no, no, no.  If you wanted to portray the Democrats as a bunch of bed-wetting losers with no confidence in Hillary, Bernie or even Joe Biden, then "Al Gore 2016?" stories are the perfect vehicle.  Even if this is 100% fabricated, it still makes the Democrats look like they're in full panic mode, without a viable candidate at all except for the guy that lost in 2000 to the Supreme Court. If it's a media play to bait Gore, he needs to be smart enough not to fall for it.

Granted, there would be some measure of revenge versus Jeb, but it's hard to portray yourself as the party that cares about America's future when you're literally fighting the same battles of 15 years ago.

This is a horrible idea, and while I respect Al Gore as a statesman and climate change activist, he had his chance at the Oval Office and blew it.  Gore would alienate the Hillary voters, the Bernie voters, and the Draft Biden folks to boot.  Yes, Democrats needs a wide-ranging discussion on issues and the future of the party.  No, Al Gore is not the future of the party.

Yeesh.