Keeping Their Eyes on the Prize
The Al Gore-Teddy Roosevelt Comparison.
History repeats itself, but not without a few wrinkles. We make the connections—then pick them apart.
The Comparison
When Al Gore won the Nobel Peace Prize for his global-warming work last week, it harked back to Teddy Roosevelt, who returned to presidential politics after collecting the prize in 1910. Will Gore also use the honor as a springboard for another run at the White House? One bad omen: the Rough Rider lost the election in 1912.
Why It Works
Like Roosevelt, who challenged his chosen successor, William Howard Taft, Gore would be taking on a former ally, Hillary Clinton, in a 2008 presidential run. Gore and TR each raised their global profiles through expansive travel after the executive branch. And post-Washington, each man's waistline grew expansive as well.
Why It Doesn
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Well, Gore might not run. Calling himself "deeply honored" to receive the prize, he basked in the attention. TR took four years to collect his Nobel. In his speech, Roosevelt noted that peace "is never the highest good unless it comes as the handmaid of righteousness." Righteousness: never a problem for Gore.
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Jonathan Darman was named Senior Writer and Political Correspondent in October of 2006. He travels the country profiling candidates for elected office and covering breaking news in national politics.
Prior to his current assignment, Darman was a General Editor in Newsweek's New York headquarters. In that role, he authored or co-authored major profiles of newsmakers in politics and media ranging from former Vice Presidential candidate John Edwards to controversial New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin to 2008 presidential hopeful Gov. Mark Warner. His May 2006 cover story, "The Mystery of Mary Magdalene," separated fact from fiction in the life of Christianity's most fascinating woman. In September of 2005, he spent three weeks covering the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Darman contributed to three Newsweek cover packages on the storm, reporting from the decimated coastline of Biloxi, from an Air Force helicopter hovering over New Orleans and from the private office of Mississippi Governor Hailey Barbour.
Previously, Darman had been an associate editor. In May, 2004 he joined the Campaign 2004 Special Project team as a correspondent. In that position he followed the Kerry/Edwards campaign, reporting from behind-the-scenes for the special issue that Newsweek published two days after Election Day. The special issue won the 2005 National Magazine Award for Single Topic Issue. Public Affairs published "Election 2004: How Bush Won and What You Can Expect in the Future," an expanded version of the campaign narrative, in January 2005. It was a national bestseller.
From February to May 2004, Darman was an associate editor for Newsweek.com where he covered everything from the real estate bubble to reality TV. He also helped conceive and edit GenNext, Newsweek's coverage of youth voters in the 2004 election. Newsweek asked five college journalists to write essays during the campaign and polled voters 18-29 years old each month on campaign issues. Before joining Newsweek as a full-time staffer, Darman held internships in the magazine's Washington and Los Angeles Bureaus and at Newsweek.com.
Darman graduated magna cum laude from Harvard with an A.B. in history and literature. A native of McLean, Virginia, he lives in New York City.
For inquiries, please contact The Daily Beast at editorial@thedailybeast.com.
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