Al Gore waves off official role
Jonathan Martin –
YAHOO NEWS
Tue Dec 9, 2008
He may be assembling a Team of Heavyweights, but Barack Obama isn’t likely to have the full-time services of one of the most formidable powers on the political landscape.
When Obama and Joe Biden sit down with Al Gore at noon Tuesday in Chicago, they’ll be talking issues — not making the pitch for the former vice-president to return to government service, say transition officials and those close to Gore.
Gore intends on continuing his work on the environment and energy from the outside rather than accepting a post.
“This meeting is a continuation of their conversations about climate and energy and how policies to address them can help the economy and jobs,” said Gore spokeswoman Kalee Kreider. “Former Vice President Gore still believes his calling at this time is to help educate the public about the issues through his roles at the Alliance at Climate Protection and other work.”
Even from the outside, though, Gore remains a forceful voice and enjoys a considerable following. That’s why Obama disclosed the event to the public and why he’ll let cameras in to take shots of the three.
Called the ‘Goreacle,’ half in jest, for his early prophecy on global warming, the Nobel Prize winner may be on his way to having that nickname validated further.
In his radio address Saturday, Obama began detailing the stimulus package he hopes to sign upon taking office and it just so happens to include much of what Gore has been urging for months: That there is a way to marry economic recovery with restoring the environment.
“We need to upgrade our federal buildings by replacing old heating systems and installing efficient light bulbs,” Obama said in the address, promising to do much the same in schools around the country.
It’s this nexus of job creation, energy and the environment that Gore has been discussing privately with Obama and advocating for in public, especially through his Repower America initiative, which aims to get the country to 100% clean electricity within 10 years.
In launching this self-described “moon-shot” proposal in a speech in July, Gore said: “It turns out that the real solutions to the climate crisis are the very same measures needed to renew our economy and escape the trap of ever-rising energy prices.”
But having won a Nobel Prize for his work on climate change and an Academy Award for his documentary, “An Inconvenient Truth,” Gore appears to be comfortable, and effective, advocating from the outside. In some ways, he’s done more to advance the issues he cares about as a private citizen than as a government official.
But those close to him indicate he’ll still maintain a voice on these topics in the new administration.
“You could certainly seek him asked to play a special envoy role on a discrete issue such as a global climate change summit or to provide expertise on how to integrate green infrastructure into a future economic recovery plan,” said Chris Lehane, who worked on Gore’s 2000 presidential campaign.
Gore waited until after the hard-fought Democratic primary before offering his endorsement, but he had conversations on energy and the environment long before then.
Accepting Gore’s endorsement after he wrapped up the nomination in June, Obama said: “When I am president I will be counting on Al Gore to help me lead the fight for a clean energy future here in America and around the globe.”
Carrie Budoff Brown contributed to this story.
