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Jewish World Review June 12, 2000 / 9 Sivan, 5760
Chris Matthews
In the Bush scenario, Vice President Gore will play the
nervous Nixonesque defender, laying desperate claim to
an era of peace and prosperity. The Texas governor,
Bush, will be the sunny, JFK-like challenger saying, "Let's
soar higher!"
It's a delightful premise, especially to reporters.
Think of the suspense: Nixon and Kennedy were tied at
47 percent each in the Gallup Poll when the fall campaign
began. After four dramatic debates, they divided the vote
on election night 34,226,731 to 34,108,157.
Another appeal of a Nixon-Kennedy rematch is the
cartoon factor.
Wouldn't it be great if Al Gore really did morph into Dick
Nixon the night of the first debate? Imagine the fun if the
vice president showed up looking sick, unshaven and
scared to death. Think of the headlines the next day if an
authoritative George W. appeared before us armed with
a devastating arsenal of facts and figures to undermine
Gore's claim of deeper experience.
On a superficial level, there's a case for such a historic rerun.
Like Jack Kennedy, Bush comes from a charming, well-off family. Like
Kennedy, he spent his halcyon youthful summers on the New England coast.
Like Kennedy, he inherited the social confidence and optimism that comes with
wealth, supportive parents, prep school and an Ivy League pedigree.
For his part, Gore shares some definite Nixonian traits. Awkward in public,
pleasant in private, he moves his body and mouth as if he were his own robot.
Like Nixon, he is not lovable as a public figure. Like Nixon, he has made his
way up through the House to the Senate to the vice presidency, earning each
new place by an admixture of sweat equity and attendance at enough party
functions to make the chicken an endangered species.
Like John F. Kennedy, George W. Bush gives off the aura of a man who can
take a loss and be quite happy with himself in another line of work, another
style of life.
Like Nixon, Gore faces two outcomes this November: victory on the course he
has set since youth, or defeat and utter humiliation for having choked under
pressure.
House leader Dick Gephardt is one smart Democrat who believed early that
Bush's breeziness makes him dangerous to someone like Gore.
The fact that the former president's son can walk away from a defeat gives him
the latitude to take risks — Social Security changes, big tax cuts, Star Wars,
anti-abortion statements and public money for vouchers at private and
parochial schools.
Gore, meanwhile, may be so frightened of defeat and the attendant ignominy
that he comes off as a guy like the Dick Nixon of 1960 — desperate to win the
presidency because he can't think of anything else to
06/07/00: Bush says 'I do' to reality
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