alternatehistory.com

I remember the 2000 Election like it was yesterday. Al Gore was fighting against George Bush in what everyone assumed would be a nail-biter. With Clinton's last year fading away the country was looking forward to a new President. The so-called "Clinton fatigue" had given George W. Bush a leg-up but Al Gore's selection of Barbara Boxer not only brought flocks of women to support the new ticket but some say it delivered New Hampshire for the Vice President and he became the first President-Elect since 1960 to win without getting two of the "Big Three" (Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania) even though he only lost Florida by 100 votes or so. Of course the Presidency of Al Gore was not all it was cracked-up to be. He was unable to save social security like he promised because of the Congress and the balanced budget didn't last past his second year in office. He's most well-known for the "Gore Tax Reform" which raised taxes on those making over $1 million and cut taxes substantially for those making less than $250,000. However his failure on education and social security marked a low-point in his Presidency and with the economy doing "satisfactory" the people looked for change and in December 2002 Gore's approval sat at a low 41%. By March it had again fallen to 38%. However no one has forgotten the events of April 19, 2003. Gore was in Tennessee to announce his campaign for reelection when a mentally unstable man threw a grenade onto the stage and killed the President and his wife. With a combination of the sympathy vote as well as her stirring speech to the nation in the wake of Gore's death the Boxer/Gephardt ticket cruised to victory against the McCain/Brownback team. Her six years in office were spent passing significant education reform, affectionately known as "The Boxer Bill" which consisted of incentives for college students to become teachers, a mandate for Parent/Teacher organizations, and some defunding of school vouchers which Boxer used her 2004-made majorities to pass. "The Boxer Bill" is still in effect today despite vows to repeal by President Romney (who defeated Boxer in 2008). Still, some say if it wasn't for the terrorist attacks in September 2006, which destroyed the Sears Tower, Disney World, and the Empire State Building, Boxer may still be President today.

So - what if Al Gore had chosen one of the other two names often-mentioned on his short list: Joe Lieberman (D-CT) or Andrew Cuomo (D-NY)? Would we have a program similar to "The Boxer Bill"? Could the 9/11/2006 attacks have been prevented? Would Gore have even been able to win the election?
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