A Biography on Al Gore

A Biography on Al Gore

As the Vice President, and one of the main running candidates in the presidential race, Al Gore has a lot on his hands. He manages to handle a full family as well as his duties at work and running a, hopefully, successful race. His main challenge will be to convince the people of the United States that he is the best of all of the candidates. This may be somewhat of a challenge for the Vice President with a formidable foe to run against. He and his running mate, Joseph Lieberman, are to face the one and only George W. Bush, the son of the former president George Bush Sr. Now we will travel into the life that has led up to this competitive race, the life of Al Gore. We will also meet the people that have played a major role in the way that this democratic candidate has formed his personality.

Al Gore was born on March 31, 1948, and is the son of former U.S. Senator Albert Gore, Sr. and Pauline LaFon Gore. Raised in Carthage, Tennessee, and in Washington, D.C. While in Washington D.C., Gore spent much of his time living out of hotels. His father was traveling quite a bit so he was forced to only live in temporary living quarters. This part of his life may have affected his people skills. He had very little contact with children and experienced most of his time with adults surrounding him. This may have caused the young man to mature at a much higher rate than other children. Gore then moved up in the world and went to college. Gore received a degree in government with honors from Harvard University in 1969. After graduation, he volunteered for enlistment in the U.S. Army and served in Vietnam. Gore used his military experience in his campaign, to relate to many of the veterans of foreign wars and to give the voters background as to his commitment to the country in which he lives. Returning to civilian life, Gore settled in Tennessee and studied religion at Vanderbilt University while working as a newspaper reporter with The Tennessean, in Nashville. He also managed to meet the woman he would marry. Her name was Mary Elizabeth Aitchenson, also known as Tipper. He and Tipper bought the farm they still call home in Carthage, Tennessee in 1973, the same year their first child was born. Gore later attended Vanderbilt Law School.

Gore began his career in public service in 1976 when he was elected to represent Tennessee in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1984 and was re-elected in 1990, when he became the first statewide candidate in modern history to carry all 95 Tennessee counties. A candidate for the Democratic nomination for President in 1988, he won Democratic primaries and caucuses in seven states.

Gore is married to the former Mary Elizabeth "Tipper" Aitcheson, an author, photojournalist and activist who now serves as President Clinton's adviser on mental health policy. They have four children: Karenna, Kristin, Sarah, and Albert. Al and Tipper Gore own a small farm near Carthage, and the family attends New Salem Missionary Baptist Church in Carthage. Al Gore's father, Albert Gore Sr., was born on a farm in Jackson County, Tennessee, and worked as a schoolteacher before entering public service--first as Smith County Superintendent of Schools, then as Tennessee's Secretary of Labor.

Winning election to the House and then to the United States Senate, Albert Gore, Sr. rose to national prominence as a champion of civil rights--one of only three southern Senators who refused to sign the Southern Manifesto; the author and sponsor of the bill that lead to the creation of the Interstate Highway system; a leader on tax reform and defense policy; and an outspoken opponent of the Vietnam War. Senator Gore was considered by many to be a new and progressive brand of southern politician, helping to connect the South to the rest of America. After leaving the Senate in 1970, Albert Gore Sr. worked as a lawyer and businessman, and tended the Gore family farm in Carthage, Tennessee. He died in 1998 at the age of 91. In December, Al Gore delivered the eulogy at a memorial service for his father in Nashville, Tennessee.

Al Gore's mother, Pauline LaFon Gore, grew up in Weakley County, and then in Jackson, Tennessee, and worked her way through college and then law school working as a waitress for 25-cent tips during the Great Depression. It was during the night shift at the Andrew Jackson Hotel that she met another young law student; Albert Gore, Sr. Pauline LaFon was one of the first women to graduate from Vanderbilt Law School. After marrying Albert Gore, Sr. in 1937, she helped to forge a new role for political spouses--campaigning actively with her husband, serving as a close adviser throughout his career, and even coining the winning slogan in his first Senate race. After her husband left the Senate, she returned to her original career as a lawyer, and has served as a mentor to young women considering legal careers. In March, Pauline LaFon Gore was honored by Vanderbilt University Law School as its Distinguished Alumna of the Year.

In addition to her close partnership with her husband, Al Gore, Tipper Gore is a well-known advocate for families,