Inventing Al Gore: A Biography

Why did Al Gore, after angry opposition to the Vietnam War, submit to the draft? What happened in Vietnam that made him sullen and bitter? After renouncing politics, what set him back on the track mapped out for him? What made him claim (falsely) that he invented the Internet? How closely is he allied with the tobacco industry? What is the real nature of his partnership with Bill Clinton? How was it altered by the Lewinsky affair? INVENTING AL GORE addresses these issues and more as it unveils the true motivations, ideals, and idiosyncracies of one of Washington's most inscrutable men. Bill Turque, who covered both of Gore's vice presidential campaigns and the Clinton White House, draws on extensive access to Gore's key advisers, friends, and family. He unmasks a man who in private can sing and dance to George Strait's music but in public measures every comment and gesture with legendary caution. As Turque details, Gore's great political albatross -- a lack of empathy -- was hatched during his lonely childhood as the product of ambitious political parents who groomed him for the presidency. Turque's keen analysis also uncovers the genesis of Gore's questionable fund-raising and of a political platform laden with worthy but emotionally safe planks such as bioethics, global warming, and the Internet. In addition, Inventing Al Gore illuminates how personal tragedies have shaped his political life and the remarkable influence that women, from his mother to Naomi Wolf, have had on his career.
INVENTING AL GORE reveals Gore to be one of the most intelligent, idealistic men in Washington, yet one who is repeatedly prone to prevarication, exaggeration, and avoidance of hard issues. Turque offers a meticulously researched narrative filled with colorful, insightful details that sharpen the debate over whether Gore can outgrow his limitations and excel in the office he has prepared for all his life. |

"Well researched, well sourced, and more than well written." Boston Globe

"A fluid, intelligent biography -- both comprehensive and comprehending." Kirkus Reviews

"A marvel of reporting . . . indispensable reading for anyone wishing to make an informed decision in the 2000 election." Publishers Weekly, Starred

"Well written and informative." Library Journal

"A valuable resource for voters . . . interested in the career of a politician who has hovered near the top of his profession." Dallas Morning News

"Refreshing . . . Turque finds [Gore] to be like so many of the rest of us -- occasionally decent, usually flawed, always conflicted." Newsday

"An invaluable resource for voters." Business Week

"Turque successfully tackles the most confounding facets of Gore's political behavior." Buffalo News

"... thoughtful new biography...What Bill Turque, a Washington correspondent for Newsweek, has done...is to amplify this portrait of the vice president with lots of details and a carefully considered appraisal of his career...focuses on contradictions and flip-flops in Mr. Gore's record and reviews his continuing efforts 'to convince the world, and perhaps himself, that he was his own man,' that he has emerged, at long last, from the shadows of his father, Senator Albert Gore of Tennessee, and more recently, Bill Clinton...Mr. Gore's zigzagging on issues is a recurrent theme in Mr. Turque's biography."-- Michiko Kakutani The New York Times

"Veteran Newsweek journalist Turque has produced a marvel of reporting...Sharply written and well-researched...This biography should be indispensable reading for anyone wishing to make an informed decision in the 2000 election." Publishers Weekly