Al Gore Last Update: 8/29/07 Biography

Democratic Party Al Gore 2008 Candidate for President of the United States of America Campaign Website | Candidate Forum

			Issues

(Select An Issue to Jump Directly) Abortion Affirmative Action Death Penalty Drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Energy Plan Global Warming Guantanamo Bay Detainment Camp Gun Control Health Care Immigration Iraq Plan Kyoto Protocol Medical Marijuana Minimum Wage Increase Net Neutrality Nuclear Power Same-Sex Marriage School Vouchers Social Security Stem Cell Research The Patriot Act Top Contributors & Amounts Unemployment

	Al Gore on Abortion
	Stance: Pro-Choice Description: Al Gore opposed the ban on partial-birth abortions and opposes legal protection for unborn children. Al Gore supports using tax dollars to pay for abortion. Gore also believes parents do not have the right to be informed that their minor daughter is pregnant and considering an abortion. Citations: 1. Bush and Gore Strike Sparks in First Debate (9/27/07) ...Gore said, he would appoint those who support a woman's right to an abortion. "Here's the difference: He trusts the government to order a woman to do what he thinks she ought to do," Gore said. "I trust women to make the decisions that affect their lives, their destinies and their bodies." 2. Al Gore Selects Pro-Abortion Lieberman as Running Mate (7/19/07) A stance on abortion for Gore and Lieberman

	Al Gore on Affirmative Action
	Stance: Supports Description: Al Gore supports affirmative action but says it needs to be mended. Citations:

	Al Gore on Death Penalty
	Stance: Supports the death penalty Description: Gore feels we should use the death penalty as a deterrence and use DNA techniques. Citations: 1. The Third Gore-Bush Presidential Debate (7/19/07) A transcript from the debate where Al Gore show support for the death penalty. 2. Debate at Harlem's Apollo Theater (7/19/07) A debate where Gore expresses his pro death penalty stance.

	Al Gore on Drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
	Stance: Opposes Drilling Description: Al Gore does not support drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Citations: 1. Debate Between the Presidential Candidates: Al Gore and George W. Bush (7/23/07) "Now, another big difference is Governor Bush is proposing to open up some of our most precious environmental treasures, like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for the big oil companies to go in and start producing oil there. I think that is the wrong choice. It would only give us a few months' worth of oil and the oil wouldn't start flowing for many years into the future." ~ Al Gore

	Al Gore on Energy Plan
	Stance: Shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy. Description: Gore wants to improve America's energy usage by... 1. Providing tax credits and business incentives for energy efficiency. 2. Use renewable energy instead of nuclear power. 3. Provide tax incentives for development of renewable energy. 4. Tax breaks for fuel efficiency will fuel prosperity. 5. Focus on future tech & incentives for developing them. Citations:

	Al Gore on Global Warming
	Stance: Believes global warming is caused by humans and it needs to be stopped immediately. Description: Gore feels we can stop global warming by not looking at it as a political issues but looking at it as a moral issue and to share a sense of urgency. Citations: 1. Global Warming 101 with Al Gore (8/7/07) Al Gore goes on Oprah and talks about global warming and what you can do to stop it. 2. Al Gore: Global Warming Testimony @ Congress 3.21.07 (8/7/07) Al Gore testifies to the House Energy & Science committees. 3. Al Gore Global Warming and Solutions (8/7/07) How to encourage businesses to clean up 4. Al Gore on Stopping GlobalWarming (8/7/07) Edited interview where Al Gore covers some of the real ways global warming will be stopped - by seeing the opportunity underlying this crisis...by going beyond left vs. right politics to a shared sense of moral purpose...by making sure we have "a well informed citizenry" to quote James Madison. Only by coming together will we save ourselves from this potential calamity.

	Al Gore on Guantanamo Bay Detainment Camp
	Stance: Close Guantanamo Description: "The Bush administration's treatment of American citizens it calls 'enemy combatants' is nothing short of un-American." - Al Gore on Guantanamo Citations: 1. Gore accuses Bush of undermining freedoms (9/27/07) "He criticized the designation of U.S. citizens as enemy combatants held without judicial review, and the imprisonment of detainees in the war on terrorism at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, urging that they receive similar hearings." 2. Fighting for the Enemy (8/29/07) Al Gore recently unleashed the U-bomb ("un-American") to characterize the handling of captured Taliban fighters: "The Bush administration's treatment of American citizens it calls 'enemy combatants' is nothing short of un-American."

	Al Gore on Gun Control
	Stance: Supports Gun Control Description: "I favor a photo license I.D. requirement for the purchase of a new handgun. I favor closing the gun show loophole. In fact, I cast the tie breaking vote in the senate to close this. . . I favor reinstatement of the three day waiting period under the Brady Law. . . toughening of enforcement on the gun laws and toughening of penalties for violation of the gun law, and better enforcement." Citations: 1. The Second Gore-Bush Presidential debate (7/23/07) Presidential debate between Bush and Gore, held on October 11, 2000 2. Vice President Al Gore considers issues such as oil prices, abortion and gun control. (7/23/07) Jim Lehrer interviews Al Gore on key election issues. March 14, 2000

	Al Gore on Health Care
	Stance: Favors a move towards non-government universal health care; Physicians, not HMO's should make the decisions; supports a strong national patient's bill of rights; proposes a prescription drug benefit under Medicare for all seniors Description: "It's one of my top priorities, to give every single child in the United States affordable health care within the next four years. I would like to see eventually in this country some form of universal health care, but I'm not for a government-run system... I think we ought to have a patient's bill of rights to take the medical decisions away from the HMOs and give them back to the doctors and nurses... I support a strong national patient's bill of rights. I want to streamline the approval of the competing generic drugs and the new kinds of treatments that can compete with them so we bring the price down for everybody... You pick your own doctor, and nobody can take that away from you. The doctor chooses the prescription that you need and nobody can overrule your doctor. You go to your own pharmacy and then Medicare pays half the price. If you're poor, they pay all of it. If you have extraordinarily high cost, then they pay all over $4,000 out-of-pocket. And I'll bring new competition to bring the price down... I want to give a tax credit for the purchase of individual health insurance plans. I want to give small business employers a tax credit, 25%, to encourage the providing of health insurance for the employees in small businesses. I want to give seniors who are, well, the near elderly, I don't like that term because I am just about in that category, but those 55 to 65 ought to be able to buy into Medicare for premiums that are reasonable and fair and significantly below what they have to get now." Citations: 1. October 11, 2000; The Second Gore-Bush Presidential Debate (7/23/07) Presidential debate between Gore and Bush 2. October 17, 2000: The Third Gore-Bush Presidnetial Debate (7/23/07) third and final Campaign 2000 debate between the Democratic candidate for president, Vice President Al Gore, and the Republican candidate, Governor George W. Bush of Texas.

	Al Gore on Immigration
	Stance: supports border protection in order to reduce illegal immigration, supports legal immigration Description: As part of the Clinton Administration, Al Gore fought to pass the landmark 1994 Crime Bill, which included $1.2 billion toward the protection of our borders and the vast reduction of illegal immigration Gore feels that bringing and keeping immigrant families together is a priority, and his record stands up to this. He has already been supporting legal immigration by trying to improve services and fighting for family reunification laws. He has also worked against prejudice, to make sure that all immigrants are counted and well represented by government, as well as better assimilated into American culture. He worked hard on a Census initiative, to this end. Al Gore denounced Proposition 187, which was a California ballot initiative posed to "deny all social services, including medical and educational programs for children, to illegal aliens residing in California. Gore encouraged a crowd of 1,800 Hispanics attending a 1994 Voter Registration Project to organize and defeat the proposition, calling it a 'nuevo [new] apartheid.'" Al Gore supports the Amnesty proposal, which would allow certain long-term illegal immigrants to become legal residents. Gore supports medical and nutritional assistance for immigrants, as well as protection for legal immigrants who become disabled. He also supports welfare for legal immigrants. He has also worked extremely hard to improve educational opportunities for immigrants. Both Al Gore and the Republican Congress are in favor of simplifying and bettering the temporary work visa programs. Citations: 1. President Gore & A Republican Congress: What would this mean for immigration issues... (7/23/07) Regarding the 2000 election, Immigration issues are discussed as, first as if Gore were elected and then as if Bush were elected.

	Al Gore on Iraq Plan
	Stance: Would wait to hear all the information before determining a plan Description: Vice-president Al Gore has criticized President Bush for the Iraq war. He has urged President Bush to find a way to remove the troops from Iraq without making the current situation in Iraq any worse. He has declined to comment on whether or not he would pull the troops citing that he would need to have access to the "full flow of information" that the presidency provides. Citations: 1. Gore to Bush on Iraq: It's Not About You (8/26/07) Vice-president Al Gore says President Bush should swallow his pride and do whats best for the country in terms of Iraq.

	Al Gore on Kyoto Protocol
	Stance: Supports Kyoto Agreement Description: Al Gore supports the Kyoto Agreement. He even helped to create the agreement as Vice-President. Citations: 1. Clinton Hails Global Warming Pact (10/7/07) "The United States delegation, at the direction of Vice President [Al] Gore, and with the skilled leadership of Undersecretary Stuart Eizenstat, showed the way. The momentum generated by Vice President Gore's visit helped move the negotiation to a successful conclusion and I thank him." - Clinton

	Al Gore on Medical Marijuana
	Stance: Against medical marijuana. Description: In a school visit, Al Gore said "Right now, the science does not show me, or the experts whose judgment I trust, that it is the proper medication for pain and that there are not better alternatives available in every situation." Citations: 1. Science doesn't say medical marijuana is proper (7/23/07) A link to some quotes with citations by Al Gore

	Al Gore on Minimum Wage Increase
	Stance: supports minimum wage increase Description: "As Vice President, Gore worked hard for the minimum wage increase enacted under this Administration in 1996, which raised the minimum wage from $4.25 an hour to $5.15 an hour. Ten million Americans received an increase in wages. He is now pressuring Congress to pass a minimum wage increase for working families this year." Citations: 1. Al Gore for President 2000 Campaign Brochure (7/23/07) Summary of Al Gore's record, on a variety of issues, as Vice President

	Al Gore on Net Neutrality
	Stance: Supports Net Neutrality Description: Al Gore has stated that "neutrality should be the central tenet that will set us on a path toward an open, democratic Internet where free speech and free markets are encouraged." Citations: 1. Al Gore Promotes Net Neutrality (7/23/07) "[N]eutrality should be the central tenet that will set us on a path toward an open, democratic Internet where free speech and free markets are encouraged" says Al Gore, in his new book The Assault on Reason.

	Al Gore on Nuclear Power
	Stance: Has problems and will not be the the energy choice of the future Description: "There are serious problems that have to be solved, and they are not limited to the long-term waste-storage issue and the 'vulnerability to terrorist attack' issue. Let's assume for the sake of argument that both of those problems can be solved. We still have other issues. For eight years in the White House, every weapons-proliferation problem we dealt with was connected to a civilian reactor program. And if we ever got to the point where we wanted to use nuclear reactors to back out a lot of coal -- which is the real issue: coal -- then we'd have to put them in so many places we'd run that proliferation risk right off the reasonability scale. And we'd run short of uranium, unless they went to a breeder cycle or something like it, which would increase the risk of weapons-grade material being available." - Al Gore Citations: 1. Al Revere (8/14/07) Gore saying nuclear power won't become a big energy source in the future because there are too many problems with it.

	Al Gore on Same-Sex Marriage
	Stance: Opposes same-sex marriage, but supports civil unions Description: "I'm for domestic partnerships having legal protections, but not the same sacrament, not the same name, because I favor protecting the institution of marriage as it has been understood between a man and a woman. But I think that a partner should have legal protection and contractual rights and health care and the rest." - Al Gore Citations: 1. Larry King Live Should Same-Sex Couples Get the Same Rights and Recognition as Straight Ones? (7/23/07) Transcript of Larry king Live in which King discusses the rights of same sex couples

	Al Gore on School Vouchers
	Stance: opposes school vouchers, favors investing in improving our schools Description: "I will not go along with any plan that would drain taxpayer money away from our public schools and give it to private schools in the form of vouchers." "Bush is for vouchers, and in his plan, he proposes to drain more money, more taxpayer money, out of the public schools for private school vouchers than all of the money that he proposes in his entire budget for public schools themselves, and only one in 20 students would be eligible for these vouchers, and they wouldn't even pay the full tuition to private school. I think that's a mistake. I don't think we should give up on the private (sic) schools and leave kids trapped in failing schools; I think we -- I think we should make it the number-one priority to make our schools the best in the world, all of them." Citations: 1. ELECTION 2000 PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE WITH REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE GOVERNOR GEORGE W. BUSH AND DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE VICE PRESIDENT AL GORE (7/23/07) Transcript of the Presidential debate between Bush and Gore, held on October 17, 2000 2. Al Gore's Presidential Nomination Acceptance Speech (7/23/07) Al Gore's 2000 Presidential nomination acceptance speech delivered on August 17, 2000

	Al Gore on Social Security
	Stance: Opposes Privatized social security, Proposed a plan to revamp social security system Description: " If I'm entrusted with the presidency, I will balance the budget every year and pay down our debt every year, putting America on the road to becoming debt free by the year 2013. That'll be good for our economy. And that's the only way we can get ready to meet our obligations through Social Security. Then I'll make sure that we use the budget surplus and the money we save from paying down the debt to save Social Security first. I'll devote all the interest savings from debt reduction to the Social Security trust fund. That way, we can keep Social Security solvent until at least 2050." Citations: 1. Breaking News Al Gore Delivers Remarks on Social Security (7/23/07) Al Gore announces his plan to save social security in response to George Bush's proposal.

	Al Gore on Stem Cell Research
	Stance: Supports Stem Cell Research Description: Al Gore supports stem cell research but has not definitively stated his opinion on embryonic stem cell research. Citations: 1. Gore plugs stem-cell research at N.J. event (7/24/07) Al Gore supports stem cell research.

	Al Gore on The Patriot Act
	Stance: Supports Repealing the Patriot Act Description: "These constant violations of civil liberties promote the false impression that those violations are necessary in order for them to take every precaution against another terrorist attack," Gore said. "But the simple truth is that the vast majority of these violations have not benefited our security at all; in fact, they have hurt the effort to improve our security." Citations: 1. Gore Urges Repeal of Patriot Act (7/23/07) Article written by Ronald Brownstein, appeared in the Los Angeles Times on November 10, 2003

	Al Gore on Top Contributors & Amounts
	Stance: Has not declared as a candidate so there is no data available Description: Has not declared as a candidate so there is no data available. Citations:

	Al Gore on Unemployment
	Stance: Has worked to decrease the unemployment rate, during his term as vice president unemployment decrease approximately 3% and 22 million new jobs were created Description: Vice President Al Gore cast the deciding vote for the Administration's 1993 economic plan, which, among other things, has helped to reduce the unemployment rate to 4.3 percent -- a dramatic drop from the 7.5 percent unemployment rate in 1992. The unemployment rate has been at or below 5 percent for 24 consecutive months. Wrote the Employment Incentives Act of 1989, to provide tax breaks and child care credits to the working poor as an incentive to seek and maintain employment. During his term as Vice President, 22 million new jobs were created and the unemployment rate dropped from more than 7% in 1993 to 4% in November 2000. The most ever under a single administration. Citations: 1. Al Gore's Accomplishments (7/23/07) Summary of Gore's accomplishments in the House Of Representatives, Congress, and as Vice President 2. Al Gore's Record as Vice President (7/23/07) Summary of Al Gore's accomplishments during his term as Vice President