Gore Blasts Bush Space Plan, Says Earth Neglected

Reuters via Yahoo! ^ | Thursday, January 15, 2004 | By Nichola Groom

[Momaw Nadon]

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore scoffed at President Bush's plan to send astronauts to the moon and Mars and said Bush was a "moral coward" for ignoring global environmental threats.

Speaking at an event sponsored by political advocacy groups MoveOn.org and Environment2004, Gore said Bush's record on the environment routinely puts the wishes of the coal, oil, utility and mining industries ahead of public interests.

"Instead of spending enormous sums of money on an unimaginative and retread effort to make a tiny portion of the moon habitable for a handful of people, we should focus instead on a massive effort to ensure that the Earth is habitable for future generations," Gore said to a cheering Manhattan crowd.

The speech is one of a series Gore, who served two terms as vice president under President Bill Clinton, has made criticizing Bush's handling of the war in Iraq, the economy, and other issues. Gore lost to Bush in the 2000 election after winning the popular vote and has ruled out a rematch in 2004.

On Wednesday, Bush announced plans to send humans back to the moon as early as 2015 and eventually to Mars -- an initiative critics derided as motivated by election-year politics that could cost hundreds of billions of dollars. His dad, former President George Bush, proposed in 1989 to send humans back to the moon and on to Mars, but that idea went nowhere.

Gore accused Bush of reneging on environmental promises made while campaigning for the White House, saying Bush's "seemingly heartfelt declaration" that he was concerned about global warming and the environment was just lip service.

"While President Bush likes to project an image of strength and courage, the truth is that in the presence of his large financial contributors he is a moral coward -- so weak that he seldom, if ever, says 'No' to anything that they want to do," Gore said.

In particular, Gore took aim at Bush's "Clear Skies" bill, which limits emissions of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and mercury but fails to regulate emissions of carbon dioxide, which is believed to contribute to global warming.

He also criticized Bush's so-called "Healthy Forest" initiative, which the White House said would reduce the risk of forest wildfires but which environmental groups said promoted logging at the expense of environmental protection.

According to Gore, such policies underscore Bush's goal of satisfying the interests of large industrial corporations in return for hefty campaign contributions.

"It seems at times as if the Bush-Cheney Administration is wholly owned by the coal, oil, utility and mining companies," he said.

While environmental issues dominated the speech, Gore still criticized Bush's handling of foreign policy, saying he has "caused America to be seen by the other nations of the world as showing disdain for the international community."

[tortoise]

I wish both Gore AND Bush would stop running up the bloody credit cards. They both want to spend money like its going out of style for their own personal glory, and leaving GenX and GenY with the bill, never mind all the entitlements that said generations will have to cover for the Boomers.

Space is spiffy and all that, but where are the adults in either this administration or in the Democratic party? I don't see many.

[RightWhale]

Was this Algore's Global Warming speech in the frozen below zero northeast? Old politicians just slowly dry up and blow away.

[CaptRon]

said Bush was a "moral coward"

What is with these people?!

[CaptRon]

ROTFLMAO!

[getmeouttaPalmBeachCounty_FL]

I'm going to vote for the President, but deploying Algore to the moon and beyond sure would be a nice bonus!

[Doc On The Bay]

Y'Know, Sometimes when you Invest Wisely, you "Get Back" FAR MORE than you "Put In."

[RightWingAtheist]

All those wo doubted Gore's claims to being a champion of science now find themselves vindicated by his asinine comments.

[Guillermo]

How soon until some leftist derides the moon mission because the moon is sacred to Mohhamedans, and they don't want infidel feet gracing its surface?

[HardStarboard]

>>>If Bush is a moral corward, Clinton was a moral traitor.<<<

Wrong! Clinton is a moral traitor. There is no requirement for Bush to be anything to make that fact!

[leftcoaster]

Martians don't have votes to sell to Democrats.

[Joe_October]

Gore was in charge of NASA while in office. Sad.

[I_dmc]

Why is it no one mentions China's plan to "own" the moon?

[jagrmeister]

Reuters needs to be banned from America. They are a left-wing British firm that has polluted our newsires for too long with their biased gargage. We won the Revolutionary war, the war of 1812, and now we're going to have to kick Reuter's backside and be done with them for good.

[denydenydeny]

Sounds like Democrats and the Black lobby.

I strongly disagree. That lobby is no better than fourth among Democrat priorities, after the abortion lobby, the union lobby, and the environmental lobby.

Whenever the interests of one of those lobbies conflicts with the interests of black Americans--for example, when unions want to be exempt from affirmative action guidelines--the black Democrat heirarchy (the Congressional Black Caucus for example) slavishly falls in line.

[solitas]

IMO: the worst thing is that the moron probably got home safe and sound after his speech...

[anymouse]

Rather ironic given Gore's diddling with NASA, where he personally directed NASA to entangle itself with the corrupt Russian space program on the space station. That corruption hurt both countries economies.

[TASMANIANRED]

Gore worries about global warming due to automobiles and industry and then totally ignores multiple hundred million acre bonfires every year.

The carbondioxide created by the forest fires that burn for multiple weeks makes the carbondioxide from the internal combustion engine look like a pimple on an elephants butt.

This bunch of enviornmental wacko's know nothing about real life or real science .

[CamelRiding4U]

Okay, I've only been back in the States for a few months, but I am already sick to death of hearing about this MoveOn.org. What the hell?

[ntnychik]

Great shots! Do you have the classic of George W. Bush glancing at Algore out of the corner of his eye?

BTW, Algore, himself, is emitting way too much carbon dioxide.

[KingNo155]

LMAO!! HEHE!