Al Gore earned top civilian honor for conceding in 2000, but what if he refused to lose?

[Uncle Joe]

In 2000, Al Gore accepted his presidential election loss after a prolonged legal fight without violence. He did the right, civil thing and he is deserving of the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

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“After winning the popular vote he accepted the outcome of a disputed presidential election for the sake of unity and trust in our institutions," Biden said. "That, to me, was amazing what you did ... history’s going to remember you for many reasons, among them will be your honesty, your integrity, and the legacy of your service."

This was a clear rebuke of his 2020 and presumed 2024 Republican opponent, 45th President Donald Trump, who still refuses to accept his loss nearly four years ago; who promises to pardon the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, to stop the certification of presidential results; and whose surrogates decline to say whether they will accept the 2024 election results, such as, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, R-South Carolina, who played this game Sunday, May 5, on "Meet the Press."

But what if Gore chose to rebuff the U.S. 2000 U.S. Supreme Court's Bush v. Gore decision to stop the recount of the vote? What if he employed the discredited theory that he as vice president wielded the power not to certify the election results for his opponent as Trump hoped his former Vice President Mike Pence would do for him in 2021? What if Gore used his influence to extend his time in power for as long as he could?

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But he did the right thing to accept his loss, as difficult as it was for him, and as antiquated as the Electoral College seems in today's politics. He exemplified a core tenet of the original meaning of civility, which is about upholding society over self.

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https://www.tennessean.com/story/opinion/columnists/david-plazas/2024/05/07/tennessee-native-al-gore-presidential-medal-freedom-bush-biden-trump/73585619007/