Celebrating Al Gore and 156 Principled Visionaries in Congress

This week, as we mark the fifth anniversary of the 2002 Congressional vote to give authority to Bush and Cheney to attack, invade and occupy Iraq, we also celebrate that Al Gore won the Nobel Peace Prize for being "the single individual who has done most to create greater worldwide understanding of the (environmental) measures that need to be adopted,” per the Nobel citation.

See Al Gore and U.N. Panel Share Nobel Peace Prize for Work on Global Warming by Larry West, About.com's Guide to Environmental Issues, for a complete and interesting report about today's prestigious honor.

It's easy for us to look back to the 2000 election debacle and ask "What if... ?"

• Would 9/11 have happened had not a Bush been in office?
• What if the U.S. had never attacked Iraq?
• What if the U.S. had swiftly, strongly retaliated against Afghanistan after 9/11?
• What if the ghastly No Child Left Behind Act never been rammed through by George Bush?
• What if President Gore had ratified the Kyoto Accord to stem global warming around the world?
• And the list goes on and on and on...

Yes, it's easy for us Democrats to nostalgically wallow in the What If's... but it's neither productive nor helpful to our country today.

The 2000 election was almost a decade ago, now, and it's too late for Al Gore to run for the White House in 2008. (Besides, per CNN today, "Gore has calculated that Clinton is unstoppable... ")

And absent Al Gore in political office, it's easy for us Democrats to bemoan the lack of principled, visionary, progressive leadership in Washington D.C.

But we would be wrong. Principled, visionary, progressive leadership was alive and well in 2002 when Congress voted to attack Iraq: 23 senators and 133 House members voted against the resolution. (Read the list at Iraq War Vote in 2002: 156 Congress Members Who Voted NO.)

In the end in 2002, 156 members of Congress from 36 states had enough information and personal insight and wisdom to make the correct decision about Iraq for our national and the world community. These discerning, courageous leaders... most of whom remain in Congress in 2007... are exactly what our country needs to lead us out of the present abyss under the Bush Administration. We can trust their judgment!

So today, as we celebrate well-deserved international recogniton of Al Gore for the principled, passionate visionary that he is, let's not waste our energies mourning what can't be fixed.

Instead, let's also celebrate and heartily support the myriad of principled leaders who had the guts and good judgment to oppose the Iraq War in 2002... not years later after cynically exercising the bad judgment to give war authority to George Bush. (Are you listening, Hillary Clinton?)

Congratulations to Al Gore, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, who stated in response to this high accolade:

"The climate crisis is not a political issue; it is a moral and spiritual challenge to all of humanity. It is also our greatest opportunity to lift global consciousness to a higher level."

Oh, and Al... just a reminder: in 2012, you'll be merely 64 years old, and in 2016, only 68 years old... both perfect ages to run for the White House!

(Photo taken on Sept 24, 2007 at the U.N. Climate Change Gathering: Jemal Countess/Getty Images)

Recommended Reading
Iraq War Vote in 2002: 156 Congress Members Who Voted NO
President Bush Refuses to Sign Kyoto Pact to Stem Global Warming
Gore Third VP To Win Peace Prize (Current Political Events)
An Inconvenient Truth: Al Gore's Call to Action on Global Warming (Environmental Issues)