“I’ve seen a candidate who has what it takes to reach out to the independent, mainstream Americans who will make the difference … particularly in the South,” Gore declared as he endorsed Dukakis.
“He’s going to send George Bush packing and bring the Democratic Party home.”
As he accepted Gore’s endorsement in Nashville on June 16, 1988, Dukakis said: “We aren’t going to concede one single state in this country . . . and that includes the states of the South.”
Both Dukakis in 1988 and Gore in 2000 carried Iowa. But neither Dukakis nor Gore was able to win any Southern states. The South would be Dean’s toughest challenge in 2004, if he wins the nomination.
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More interesting analysis of the Gore endorsement and how Gore’s politics are, in fact, closer to Dean’s than many thought here.
