best birthdays, boys: remember, Jose, XL is just a number, not necessarily a size
Love the TOD, as I love politics but rarely get to post. Seems to me that what Aaron Sorkin et al. were writing for The West Wing was something of a fantasy on how the executive branch would have been under Al Gore. There would be intellect, and due consideration of opposing points of view, applied to every decision the president made.
Americans traveling abroad wouldn't be greeted with snickers and scowls. We'd be known as a peaceful giant, one that held to principles of fairness such as habeus corpus, the right to a speedy trial, the right to private consultations with an attorney, to know what one is charged with. And as a country that didn't suddenly abandon old treaties like the Geneva Convention, so that we could abandon our tradition of decency and utilize torture.
While I believe 9/11 would have happened, I truly believe Osama Bin Laden would have been caught and punished. If half of the resources devoted to ousting Saddam Hussein had been devoted to ending Al Qaeda, we'd have won a far worthier battle. No troops died in wars started by Clinton, and that fine record would likely have continued.
Government would be a whole lot smaller. If President Gore discovered the FBI and the CIA weren't effectively working together, he'd yell at the heads and order them to. So, no need for the vast bureaucracy known as Homeland Security. And no paying for all of that by borrowing from the Chinese, either.
The Green thing is the most obvious thing: every new structure would be built with solar panels on its roof. Every bus and taxi would be electric. The roads would be fixed, and would be filled mostly with electric cars and hybrids.
The Supreme Court would be a whole lot wiser and less ideological. Government wouldn't tap our phones or look at our library check-outs. The rich would be taxed more (Inheritance Tax would remain) and the middle class would be taxed less. Having a leader who respects science inspires scientists to make great discoveries.
It's also likely that Gore would have made a few bone-headed mistakes. But he'd have the humility to admit his errors, and change policies that needed changing. I don't think he'd have been the greatest president ever, but probably better than most.
