At first I thought this might be a joke or hoax when a friend mentioned it, but I did find a story online: New York Times: \"Tipper Gore Considering Senate Run\")

March 14, 2002
Tipper Gore Considering Senate Run
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 11:22 p.m. ET

"WASHINGTON (AP) -- Tipper Gore is weighing an overture from Democrats to run for her husband's old Senate seat from Tennessee, sources close to her said Thursday.

"The sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Democrats urged Mrs. Gore to run after Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., announced last Friday that he would not seek re-election.

"One of the sources said Mrs. Gore was committed to public service and believed she owed it to herself to give some thought to a run.

"Her husband, Al Gore, held the Senate seat from 1985 to 1993, before becoming vice president. Gore said he would not run for his old seat immediately after Thompson made his announcement.

"One Democratic operative close to the Gores, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Mrs. Gore had received a handful of overtures from Democrats urging her to consider running for the Senate and Mrs. Gore was weighing them.

"However, the official said there was some doubt Mrs. Gore would run, given her tendency to shrink from the limelight during the presidential campaign and her general unease about the national political process. Still, the official, said it was telling that Mrs. Gore did not reject the overtures out of hand."

I wish Al would run again, because maybe this time his ideological compass would be calibrated properly to the left (especially after the 2000 election). If Tipper's going to run, however, I think she'd be capable enough. She's no Bill Frist, but then who is? This is a legislative body with the likes of Mike Enzi and Fritz Hollings filling its chairs!

She supposedly shies from the spotlight and has struggled with depression brought on in part by stress, so a Senate campaign may really not be a good idea. If she isn't running, I think the Republicans have Tennessee wrapped up. I just hope either Morales and Kirk beats Cornyn in Texas, and that Bowles can trump Elizabeth Dole in North Carolina!

One of our Democratic senators here in New Jersey, the sleazy, slippery Robert Torricelli, may have a real fight on his hands.

I can't believe a state as conservative as TN ever had a Democratic senator to begin with. Of course, we have two Democratic senators from FL...go figure. But "Democrat" in the South doesn't mean the same thing as "Democrat" up North.

I think any Democrat is going to have trouble winning that seat. Remember, if Al Gore had won his own home state in 2000, he'd have been President by midnight on Election Night.

As for southern Democrats, don't forget that from the U.S. Civil War until Franklin Roosevelt's presidency, that was the conservative party, while the Republicans were in many ways politically the progressive party, except with regard to big business. The entire south used to be Democratic, but in the 1960s, with the passage of civil rights and voting rights legislation by Lyndon Johnson, a Texas Democrat no less, many southern Democrats switched parties. (Southern Democrats had already failed to support Stevenson and Kennedy.)

Strom Thurmond, Phil Gramm and Jesse Helms all at one time were Democrats. In the main, many southern Democrats are still more conservative than their northern and Western counterparts, while southern Republicans are in the main more conservative than *their* northern counterparts. But there are always exceptions--New Jersey, Michigan, Missouri, Pennsylvania, etc.--have both extremely liberal and extremely conservative congressional representation, so....

In general, the most liberal Democrats (Kennedy, Clinton, Schumer, Levin, Sarbanes, Harkin, etc.) in the U.S. Senate and House come from the Northeast, industrial Midwest and California--all parts of the country Gore won. The most conservative Republicans (Lott, Sessions, Shelby, Gramm, etc.) come from the deep south and Rocky Mountain States, all of which Bush won.

But moderate Democrats can win statewide offices in the South. South Carolina, Virginia, Alabama, and North Carolina ALL have Democratic governors. Georgia has two Democratic senators, one of whom, Miller, is quite conservative, while Louisiana also has two. Arkansas could easily have a Democratic Senator, and the same is true of North Carolina. And Chuck Robb only recently lost to George Allen.... Republicans also can win in the northeast and midwest--but they have to be moderate to fairly liberal. Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Illinois, all fairly liberal states, have had Republican governors--all of them to the left on many social issues of the national party and White House. Bill Weld, like current NYC mayor, was a Democrat in everything but official party affiliation. And Florida is a fairly mixed bag, thank God! (Which Gore won, but that's another story.)

Gore had no chance to win Tennessee, given the looming presence of ex-pres Clinton. But he MIGHT have won New Hampshire had he campaigned more vigorously there, which would have pushed him over the margin of victory even with the debacle in Florida. Tipper could win Tennessee--it would be close, though.

[ March 15, 2002: Message edited by: fantomas ]

go for it girl!!!

I'd be surprised if Tipper Gore runs; she has never liked being in the front lines of things and has admitted that she was uncomfortable being so public during the 2000 campaign.

Saying that, I do admire her work on destigmatizing issues involving mental health.

~Adam

She didn't seem to have a problem seeking the spotlight during the 80s when her little group (Parents Music something-or-other) was up in arms over song lyrics and such.

Excellent point Adam. Tipper while not perfect, was one of the first to talk openly about depression and its associated stigma. I say good for her!

It's all academic now; Tipper's not running, Al has shaved, he recently gave a fiery speech in New York City that sounds like a prequel to a serious run at 2004, and it will be interesting--no, FASCINATING--to see how he and the other Democrats 1) address Bush's continuing popularity; 2) their lack of a coherent message since Clinton's departure; and 3) the viability of Al running in 2004.

I could see a Kerry-Edwards or Daschle-Edwards ticket; the latter would be something to witness, since Daschle is so soft-spoken and liberal, and Edwards is a real press-the-flesh type with great charisma. Kerry might come off as wooden, though he's one of the sharpest guys in the Senate, a veteran and War hero (unlike most of the hawks in both parties), and unspeakably rich (since he married the Heinz heiress, though he already was quite rich).

Plus his wife is a Brazilian native, which is a plus in my book.