Opinion: The Gore Watch: XI

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Another ray of light for hopeful Al Gore backers. With the Newt Watch now officially over, much attention has focused on the political plans of the former vice president.

Based on absolutely no sign whatsoever from the potential candidate himself, the Draft Al Gore movement remains strong and alive with its own well-designed website with petitions to sign, posters to post, a campaign song to sing, volunteer lists, a way to find like-minded Al Gore backers in your area, Draft Gore merchandise, videos, a collection of his not-so-recent speeches, and op-ed articles urging his candidacy which you can plagiarize and send to your local newspaper.

Anyway, Al is going to be on national TV again. Now, there are no guarantees that he’ll announce a candidacy during his appearance on NBC. The network refused to comment. But the show is scheduled for the politically symbolic month of November. And one can always hope.

Word leaked in recent days that Gore was seen in New York City, where he taped an appearance as a guest star on NBC’s ’30 Rock.’ He’ll play a mysterious evil genius who lives in a giant house on a Tennessee mountaintop and is threatening to melt all the globe’s glaciers and raise the sea level to cover the entire state of Florida unless the 2000 recount there is re-opened.

No, that’s not true. We don’t know what his guest role is, which is what prompts so much hope among Al Gore backers that he might take the occasion of a real TV show about a fictitious TV show to announce his real presidential candidacy that night. That would be just in time for the Iowa caucuses, which if the primary schedule keeps going as it is, could come right around Thanksgiving. So set your TiVo for the week of Nov. 4.

--Andrew Malcolm