After losing in the US presidential election, Al Gore reportedly had a big brawl with Bill Clinton. Clinton blamed Gore for deliberately drawing a line between himself and Clinton, and for having failed to make good use of Clinton's political achievements in the election campaign. Meanwhile, Gore complained that he had been an innocent victim of Clinton's scandals. He simply could not get rid of Clinton's influence during the campaign.
In fact, the buddy-buddy relations enjoyed by Clinton and Gore, both in public and private life, have been a rarity between president and vice president in US history. Having ruled the White House for eight years, they were once regarded as the best partners in politics.
But the two good friends started to harbor grudges against each other after the Monica Lewinsky scandal surfaced. Their aides also privately rebuked each other as a negative factor in election campaigns.
Since George W. Bush took office several months ago, the two have gone separate ways. Although Clinton has been out of a job after stepping down as president, news about him has never stopped -- including allegedly abusing power in his pardons, allegedly having another affair and wanting to divorce Hillary, and the rumor that he might host TV programs at an annual salary of tens of millions dollars. Clinton may be the first former president to have attracted more of the spotlight than the current national leader.
In a stark contrast to Clinton, Gore immediately found a job after leaving the White House. He is now a visiting professor at three universities. Once a reporter before entering politics, Gore now teaches journalism.
But politically, Gore has become a silent person. He has not met Clinton for months and tried to avoid participating in political activities. Even facing Bush's regressive environmental policy, Gore, who was once praised as "the most environmental vice president in the world,"?still kept his mouth sealed.
The only other piece of news about him is that he has gained 40 pounds. Some worry that his indifference to politics will be disadvantageous should he stage a comeback.
Meanwhile, Clinton simply cannot leave politics behind. Through the media, he often expresses his opinions about the current political situation. Despite feeling uncomfortable that Bush has abolished many of his policies, he does not hesitate to praise his successor as a strong-willed leader who can focus on his goals and is adept at management. Bush reciprocated by sending the "civilian" Clinton to negotiate with Chinese president Jiang Zemin (
This is what US politics is like: the former president and vice president who bear grudges against each other due to election defeat; a current national leader who seldom appears in the media; and a former president who keeps drawing the media spotlight.
Coincidentally, Taiwan's version of realpolitik follows the same path.
But the two versions have two differences. First, the US version has only been on stage for over 100 days, while Taiwan's has lasted for a year.
Apparently, Taiwan still fails to walk out of the shadow of elections and a former president's influence. Second, Americans know their version of politics through the US media, while Taiwanese get details of their version from news "imported" from Japan.
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