MIAMI, Oct. 11 (UPI) — The man who barely lost the American presidency 16 years ago on Tuesday returned to the very state that denied him the White House — this time to stump for the woman who was first lady while he was Bill Clinton‘s vice president.
Al Gore made his debut on Hillary Clinton‘s campaign trail in Miami Tuesday afternoon, pulling out all the stops to try and push the Democratic candidate over the top for the Nov. 8 vote.
Gore, who’s crusaded against climate change since leaving public office in 2001, was introduced by Clinton at a campus of Miami-Dade College to a raucous chorus of applause.
“I’m here today with two very simple messages,” Gore said at the start of his remarks.
“No. 1, when it comes to the most urgent issue facing our country and the world, the choice in this election is extremely clear,” he said. “Her opponent … would take us toward a climate catastrophe.”
“Here’s my second message: Your vote really, really, really counts,” Gore added, referring to his narrow loss in Florida that cost him the 2000 election. “You can consider me as an Exhibit A of that truth.”
Gore came out on the losing end of that vote — famously being declared by TV networks initially as the winner of Florida’s 25 critical electoral votes, only to haveGeorge W. Bush named the winner hours later. That declaration for Bush was also later pulled and the state became embroiled in a dramatic recount that lasted for weeks. Ultimately, state and federal courts issued decisions that handed Bush the White House. The final electoral tally — Bush 271, Gore 266.
The former Tennessee senator used that scenario to demonstrate how important Florida’s votes will be on election day — talking against chants of, “you won!”
Gore went on to state bluntly that the future of Miami and Florida’s coastal cities are riding on the ballot. Clinton, he said, will continue to fight climate change while GOP candidate Donald Trump will do nothing.
In her opening remarks, Clinton said she plans to rely on Gore’s expertise in global warming to advise her in the White House.
Florida is expected to be a key battleground state, yet again, and its electoral votes (now 29) might perhaps be the allotment that determines the 2016 winner. Early voting numbers in the state so far favor Clinton.
Many political analysts, and Clinton herself, believe that if the former secretary of state wins Florida, there is no way Trump could reach the 270 electoral votes needed to become president.
Gore’s appearance in South Florida on Tuesday was at least partly strategic. Wednesday is the deadline for residents of the Sunshine State to register to vote.
