Is 'The Ozone Man' making a political comeback?

By BILL FERGUSON
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
I'll be honest with you -- I haven't missed Al Gore. After he rode off into the sunset after falling ever-so-short of moving into the White House in 2000, I've heard a murmur here or there about him teaching or working on a book, but the stories never held much interest for me.
I didn't pay much attention to Al when he was vice president because, well, he was a vice president. Unless the president dies, or you accidentally shoot someone, being vice president is a pretty low-profile gig.
And I wasn't exactly blown away by him when he ran for the top job in 2000. Bush and Gore were both weak candidates, and I think the country's inability to make up its mind in that election was a direct result of their mutual failure to impress. (I voted Libertarian, if you must know.)
Well, guess what? Al Gore is back, and he wants to save the earth. Al was the toast of France at this year's Cannes Film Festival as his global warming fright-fest "An Inconvenient Truth" made its debut. I haven't seen the film, but word is it's a pretty convincing look at how we're screwing up the planet.
Spotlight
Al seems to be basking in the warm glow of the spotlight again, and he's getting good reviews on the passionate-yet-laid-back approach he takes while speaking in support of his new film. There is even talk (thought he denies that the thought has even crossed his mind) of him making another run at for the White House in 2008.
Hard to believe? Maybe. At first blush, it may seem odd that Democrats would even consider "The Robot" as a viable option, especially when they have Hillary warming up in the bullpen. But maybe it isn't such a crazy idea.
The thing I like about the new-and-improved Al Gore, and the thing I think a lot of people would be attracted to, is that the guy actually seems to care about this global warming stuff. Passionately. As far as presidential candidates go, that kind of commitment to a cause, any cause, is a rare quality.
Let's look at the current favorites for the 2008 election from the two major parties. What does Hillary Clinton stand for? What is her cause? We hear her spouting off about ethanol and "staying the course" in Iraq because her advisers have told her that a move to the center will help her demographics, but none of it seems particularly genuine.
Bush's pal
And what about John McCain on the Republican side? What happened to the maverick with the libertarian streak who once blasted Bush's spending habits and decried the influence of the theocrats in his own party? These days he's become Bush's new best pal and has been seen exchanging bear hugs with Jerry Falwell. At what price party acceptance, John? You look like just another politician to me.
I believe many Democrats are attracted to the idea of Gore running again because, right now at least, he's not acting like a politician. He looks a lot like someone who stands for something and is willing to take the heat from those who disagree with him without compromising his principles.
The question is, if he were to run for office again would he continue to be a man of principle or would he fall back to being the consultant-driven people-pleaser we had to endure in 2000?
Maybe we'll find out. Maybe not. In the mean time, I wonder what movie Hillary is watching this weekend?
Bill Ferguson is a columnist for the Macon (Ga.) Telegraph.