I think I'm gonna cry...

Al Gore, after winning my heart over the past few weeks, has apparently decided to break it.

Gore's decision opens up the 2004 presidential field for Democrats. Vermont Gov. Howard Dean is running and Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry has formed an exploratory committee and will announce his decision after the new year. Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman, Gore's running mate in 2000, has said he is interested in running.

My theory? Gore has discovered how fun it is to not play political reindeer games and speak his mind on things. Being faced with the possibility of having to play those games all over again, he decided not to.

What I don't think he realized is that someone who *doesn't* pander is *exactly* what the disenchanted Democratic voter base was looking for. Lieberman and Kerry rolled over for the White House faster than France did for Germany. If the Democratic nomination for president in 2004 is a congressperson who gave Bush their support for war on Iraq I swear, I'm finally moving to Canada.