The Vice President
Bill Clinton’s selection of Al Gore as his running mate in 1992 marked a generational shift: For the first time, both candidates on a presidential ticket were born after World War II. The pair became the youngest team ever to make it to the White House, and they brought a new vitality to the work of government.
A Vietnam veteran and father of four, Al Gore served eight years in the House of Representatives and eight years in the U.S. Senate—where he became known as an expert on a broad range of issues, from information technology to the environment, and from arms control to Alzheimer’s. Empowered by President Clinton to bring that same energy to the White House, Al Gore transformed the vice presidency, turning a largely ceremonial position into a center of ideas and innovation.
From his office in the West Wing, Gore played an important role in nearly every major decision. He took the lead on a number of high-profile issues: shaping environmental policy, guiding U.S.–Russia relations, streamlining the federal government, and leading administration efforts to support the burgeoning information and telecommunications revolution. He embodied Harry S. Truman’s description of the vice presidency: “It is the man who makes the office, not the office the man.”
