The World's Most Selfish Man: Al Gore

I just finished reading Bill Sammon's book " At Any Cost: How Al Gore Tried to Steal the Election", and it was quite an eye opener.  I know, it's ancient history, right?  While it does relate the story of the 2000 election Florida fiasco, there are a lot of reasons to check it out now.  I'll explain why in a minute.  But first, the book itself...

Sammon, a reporter for the Washington Times, conducted numerous interviews -- both on and off the record -- with the key players in the 2000 election Florida fiasco.  The book is a narrative, but Sammon works in all of the behind-the-scenes details that you didn't get from the headlines while it happened.  He tracked down specific people who impacted (or were impacted by) the happenings, from a county canvassing board member to a Navy seaman around the globe, and tells how their stories fit into the bigger -- and much more troubling -- picture.

Let me break it down, just to refresh your memory.

The first breakdown occurred due to the Florida panhandle being in the Central time zone.  The MSM began reporting that the state had gone to Gore 11 minutes before the polls closed in the panhandle.  Obviously, if the polls were still open, that couldn't possibly have been accurate.  How many voters didn't bother to make their way to the polls just in time if they thought the state was already called?  Here's the catch - the panhandle is overwhelmingly Republican, with well over half a million potential votes there.  But the MSM was just getting warmed up.  They called several states for Gore early, and delayed calling several states for Bush.  Florida, in particular, was delayed for over an hour, until they finally called it for Gore despite the fact that early returns actually showed Bush in the lead.  In fact, it wasn't until over two hours later (with actual vote counts showing Bush ahead by 150,000 votes) that the MSM began calling Florida 'too close to call' again.  It was the beginning of a completely one-sided, slash-and-burn, partisan attack on Bush and the Republican party that has spiraled out of control to this day.

If you want the details, read the book.  Here are just some of the highlights that should anger you:
- Gore actually called to concede to Bush, then retracted his concession shortly after
- the first recount was legally required because of the small margin of victory, but the second, third, and (in some cases) fourth hand recounts were all due to Gore grasping at straws
- the only counties that Gore demanded recounts from were Democrat strongholds
- Gore's people sued to only count ballots that they thought would give them more votes, not all ballots (as legally required)
- Gore's people relied on recount numbers that they KNEW were inflated and illegal
- the hand recounts were conducted using no fewer than half a dozen standards (remember butterfly ballots and hanging/dangling chads?)
- Al Gore went on TV repeatedly, pledging not to sue his way into office, even while his own lawyers were suing to get recounts done and votes for Bush thrown out
- Al Gore went on TV repeatedly, pledging to abide by certain legal timelines and precedents while his own lawyers were formulating new lawsuits to perpetuate the process
- Gore personally instructed his operatives to smear Katherine Harris, the Florida Secretary of State
- Al gore went on TV repeatedly, saying every vote needed to be counted, even while his own lawsuits actively attempted to eliminate ballots sent in from military personnel all around the world
- Gore's lawsuits were blatantly illegal, things like trying to change election law after the election was over (an obvious federal violation)
- Al Gore lost EVERY LEGAL BATTLE through the entire post-election process except one, a decision from the Florida Supreme Court which was vacated (meaning not just overturned, but 'obliterated' from the legal record) by the U.S. Supreme Court
- the Supreme Court's last decision that ensured Bush's presidency was a 7-2 decision, not a 5-4 decision that was popularized by the MSM
- by the end, even Democrats in Congress and Democrat-appointed judges were disgusted with Gore's actions

There is so much in this book that this really is a very small summary (believe it or not!).  The main thing to take away from this book is Al Gore's character and the effect of his actions on the Democrat party.  After he lost, he knew that the chances of a recount coming out in his favor were infinitesimal, but he pursued them anyway.  When it became apparent that he was going to lose again, he made the decision to fight until the bitter end no matter what.  He went psycho, which is what prompted his absolutely insane lawsuits and outrageous actions.  Despite losing attempt after attempt, and facing an uphill battle against Bush (the publicly perceived winner), Katherine Harris (who had the power to certify the vote tallies), the federal judge ending several of his lawsuits (who was a Dem appointee), the U.S. Supreme Court, Gore's own party (even people like Ted Kennedy distanced himself) and the Republican-controlled Congress (who would determine the winner if all else failed), Gore became -- as Sammon put it -- a political kamikaze.  He decided that if he couldn't win, he would do his best to take Bush, the Republicans, and everyone else down with him.  Thus, he single-handedly forced the entire nation through the wringer we all remember as the 2000 election debacle.

Now, you may be wondering why I re-hashed all of this, and why it matters now.  I wanted to give you a brief refresher on those outrageous days for two reasons.  First, I think it was Gore's actions that actually began the trend of openly slashing Bush at every opportunity by both the Democrat party and the MSM.  In the past, there was such a thing as statesmanship, which meant that even if you lost a vicious battle, you would concede with honor and refuse to drag the country through the mud in a protracted legal battle.  Gore blew through that precedent simply for his own selfish gain.  At one point in the book, Sammon described how Gore laid out his order of priorities to his operatives: Gore first, then Gore's big supporters (Jesse Jackson, AFL-CIO, etc.), then the Democrat party, then the American people.  This is disturbing, considering this guy was almost President, and a very telling snapshot of where politicians' priorities often lie.

The second reason I went through this is that Al Gore is now pushing for power on the global stage.  If you've been a regular reader, you know I've often spoken out against global warming, and I think that a lot of people are starting to understand what it's really about.  But, I would also caution you all to think about Gore's completely selfish actions at the end of the 2000 election - his own personal gain trumped all sense of fairness, honesty, and honor.  He showed he would stop at nothing to gain the White House.  How do you think he'll react when people start slowing this global warming madness?  There's no telling, but it won't be pretty.  He's the same petty, selfish man, but playing on an even bigger scale.

Watch out for this guy - he has way too much influence, and way too much money to be healthy, especially given his past track record of psycho-ness.  He is the most selfish man in the entire world, and there's no telling what he is capable of destroying for his own gain.

There's my two cents.