Gore May Broker Obama, Clinton Deal

According to CNN sources, former vice president and 2000 Democratic nominee for president Al Gore will endorse neither Sen. Hillary Clinton nor Sen. Barack Obama in the 2008 Democratic presidential nominating contest.

With virtually all major Democratic presidential aspirants and dignitaries committed to one side or the other, Mr. Gore sees value in staying neutral, sources say. In the increasingly likely event that neither Mrs. Clinton nor Mr. Obama will have the necessary delegates to claim the nomination, Mr. Gore’s neutrality would allow him to broker any necessary deal at the Democrats’ nominating convention in Colorado in August.

Gore also sees his neutrality as a bargaining chip that will allow him to foist his environmental agenda onto the eventual nominee.