Vice President Al Gore is either the dimmest bulb in the race, or his inability to stop making wild claims about his record is pathological. Recently, he added designing the earned income tax credit to his list of inventions and discoveries. He noted Bill Bradley's support for an expansion of the EITC, and said, "I was the author of that proposal, I wrote that." Congress passed the EITC in 1975, two years before Gore joined the House.
Gore's previous ridiculous claims have met with such derision, that a prudent man would adopt a mantle of modesty about his actual accomplishments. He should be expressing some doubt about whether Tipper's four kids are all his. Speaking of Tipper, why hasn't the family's mental-health expert seen her husband's delusional claims as a cry for help?
Meanwhile, news of Bill Bradley's irregular heartbeat prompted Al Gore to release the results of his recent medical exam. He explained that he wasn't in top condition when tested, because he had just won the Iron Man competition and was feeling a bit ragged.
Governor Bush performed ably in the Des Moines debate, and the contrast with his unimpressive earlier performances won him praise for the OK showing. Steve Forbes was overshadowed by the other candidates' exchanges, remains behind in Iowa, and is stuck in the single digits in the national polls. So, the media excitedly declares that the GOP contest is a two-person race between Bush and McCain. Which it is – but only in New Hampshire.
McCain continues to concentrate his fire on Republicans who oppose his campaign finance reform agenda, such as the GOP debate audiences in Arizona and Iowa. The media swooned over his duet with Bill Bradley, but conservative voters have been immune to his charms. McCain trails Bush in South Carolina, and is tied with the frontrunner in his home state of Arizona.
The two candidates running effective national campaigns will be the nominees next year. So, the media will be covering a Bush-Gore contest — in short, exactly the Bore contest they tried so hard to avoid.
