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Al-Ahram Weekly 24 - 30 August 2000 Issue No. 496 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 24 - 30 August 2000 Issue No. 496
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters His own man
By Thomas GorguissianHoping to step out of the shadow of Bill Clinton's eight-year tenure, Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore addressed his party's Convention in Los Angeles last week, emphasising "I stand here tonight as my own man." And indeed, Gore had looked a bit abandoned over the past few weeks, as he trailed his Republican rival George W Bush in most polls. Unless, of course, Gore and Lieberman keep their flock happy with more political gymnastics of their own.
Al Gore's speech succeeded not only in distancing the Democratic front runner from Bill Clinton, but also in addressing issues dear to average Americans. What is more, Gore reached out to a wide spectrum by admitting, "I know my own imperfections. I know that sometimes people say I'm too serious, that I talk too much substance and policy. Maybe I've done that tonight. But the presidency is more than a popularity contest. It's a day-by-day fight for people. Sometimes, you have to choose to do what's difficult or unpopular. Sometimes, you have to be willing to spend your popularity in order to pick the hard right over the easy wrong."
The message was clear. Gore vowed to speak for "the quiet, everyday heroism of hard-working Americans." But in this economically prosperous era, most pundits wonder whether such sweet-talk will be enough. The character factor is still the favourite topic among Republicans bent on showing that Gore is just another Clinton. According to the Los Angeles Times, in his 51-minute speech Gore mentioned the word "prosperity" 10 times, "working families" nine times, "Tipper," his wife, six times, the words "God" or "religion" five times and "Clinton" just once. A well choreographed speech punctuated by 60 rounds of applause tried to present the new Gore to the people, especially to those who were watching him on television.
American politicians are, more than ever, acting with the TV mirror-image in mind. An estimated 26 million people watched Al Gore's acceptance speech last Thursday, approximately one million more than had viewed that of his Republican counterpart George W Bush two weeks earlier. Yet estimates by Nielsen Media Research reveal that the number of American households who followed the speech of Democratic vice presidential candidate Joseph Lieberman was 20.3 million. However, nearly 29 million viewers found the same night's Survivor episode more interesting. About 17.5 per cent of American homes tuned in to the Democratic National Convention on an average night, while 16 per cent watched the Republicans. Both represent all-time lows vis-à-vis the 1960s when nearly 30 per cent of US households watched the conventions on just three channels.
But then, the Democrats gathered in Los Angeles had more important issues to confront. The drift of their party after November's electoral contest is one of them. While some delegates felt that the choice of Lieberman strengthened the ticket, there were doubts too. Reactions from African Americans, liberal Democrats, Arab Americans, and even some Jews were markedly mixed. "Lieberman may be an Orthodox Jew in his personal practice, but in his role as a public spokesperson he has moved away from the Jewish tradition," Rabbi Michael Lerner told MSNBC. "He has none of that prophetic voice that leads Jews to criticize our own Jewish community and Israel in the name of Torah values. He has none of that Jewish sensitivity to the oppressed that would place their needs above the needs of the wealthy... Lieberman is likely to accelerate the process in which the two major parties are merging into one pro-business, pro-wealthy, elitist and morally tone-deaf governing force."
According to Jerry Hagstrom, a contributing editor of the National Journal, "Lieberman could also be a liability with Arab and African Americans. Witness statements by Willie Brown, the mayor of San Francisco, that Gore should go to a black church every Sunday between now and Election Day."
Arab Americans are no less apprehensive. Insisting that her concerns "have nothing to do with [Lieberman's] faith," Maya Berry, an Arab American delegate from Michigan, maintained she was worried about his previous positions in the Senate on the PLO and Jerusalem. Berry was among 52 Arab American delegates at the convention complaining that donations raised by Arab American groups were returned by the Democrats in the election seasons of 1984 and 1988.
