Albert Gore, Sr.
Encyclopedia
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Sr. (December 26, 1907 – December 5, 1998) was an American
politician
, serving as a U.S. Representative
and a U.S. Senator
for the Democratic Party
from Tennessee
.
Gore and his wife Pauline LaFon Gore
had two children: daughter Nancy LaFon Gore (born in 1938 and died of lung cancer
in 1984) and a son Albert Gore Jr.
in 1948. Al Gore, Jr. would follow in his father's political footsteps in the Democratic Party representing Tennessee as a U.S. Representative and Senator, and later serving as Vice President
.
, the third of five children of Allen Gore and Maggie Denny Gore. Gore's patrilineal ancestors were Scots-Irish who first settled in Virginia
in the mid 17th-century and moved to Tennessee after the Revolutionary War. Gore studied at Middle Tennessee State Teachers College
and graduated from the Nashville Y.M.C.A. Night Law School, now the Nashville School of Law
. He first sought elective public office at age 23, when he ran unsuccessfully for the job of superintendent of schools in Smith County, Tennessee. A year later he was appointed to the position after the man who had defeated him died.
After serving as Tennessee Commissioner of Labor from 1936 to 1937 Gore was elected as a Democrat to the 76th Congress in 1938, re-elected to the two succeeding Congresses, and served from January 3, 1939 until his resignation on December 4, 1944 to enter the U.S. Army
.
Gore was re-elected to the 79th and to the three succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1945 to January 3, 1953). In 1951, Gore proposed in Congress that "something cataclysmic" be done by U.S. forces to end the Korean War
: a radiation belt (created by nuclear weapon
s) dividing the Korean peninsula permanently into two.
Gore was not a candidate for re-election but was elected in 1952 to the U.S. Senate
. In his 1952 election, he defeated six-term incumbent Kenneth McKellar
. Gore's victory, coupled with that of Frank G. Clement
for governor of Tennessee over incumbent Gordon Browning
on the same day, is widely regarded as a major turning point in Tennessee political history and as marking the end of statewide influence for E. H. Crump
, the Memphis
political boss. During this term, Gore was instrumental in sponsoring and enacting the legislation creating the Interstate Highway System. Gore was re-elected in 1958 and again in 1964, and served from January 3, 1953, to January 3, 1971, after he lost reelection in 1970. In the Senate, he was chairman of the Special Committee on Attempts to Influence Senators during the 84th Congress.
Gore was one of only three Democratic senators from the 11 former Confederate
states who did not sign the 1956 Southern Manifesto
opposing integration
, the other two being Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson
(who was not asked to sign) and Gore's fellow Tennessean Estes Kefauver
, who refused to sign. South Carolina
Senator J. Strom Thurmond
tried to get Gore to sign the Southern Manifesto, Gore refused. Gore could not, however, be regarded as an out-and-out integrationist
, having voted against some major civil rights
legislation including the Civil Rights Act of 1964
. He did support the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He had easily won renomination in 1958 over former governor of Tennessee Jim Nance McCord
, which at that point was still tantamount to election
(because of the traditional weakness of the Republican party in the post-Reconstruction South); by 1964 he faced an energetic Republican challenge from Memphian Dan Kuykendall
, who ran a surprisingly strong race against him.
By 1970, Gore was considered to be fairly vulnerable for a three-term incumbent Senator, as a result of his liberal positions on many issues such as the Vietnam War
and Civil Rights. This was especially risky, electorally, as at the time Tennessee was moving more and more towards the Republican Party. He faced a spirited primary
challenge, predominantly from former Nashville
news anchor Hudley Crockett, who used his broadcasting skills to considerable advantage and generally attempted to run to Gore's right. Gore fended off this primary challenge, but he was ultimately unseated in the 1970 general election
by Republican Congressman William E. Brock III
. Gore was one of the key targets in the Nixon
/Agnew
"Southern strategy
." He had earned Nixon's ire the year before when he criticized the administration's "do-nothing" policy toward inflation. In a memo to senior advisor Bryce Harlow
, Nixon aide Alexander Butterfield
relayed the President's desire that Gore be "blistered" for his comment. Spiro T. Agnew traveled to Tennessee in 1970 to mock Gore as the "Southern regional chairman of the Eastern Liberal Establishment". Other prominent issues in this race included Gore's opposition to the Vietnam War, his vote against Sen. Everett Dirksen
's amendment on prayer in public schools, and his opposition to appointing Clement Haynsworth
and G. Harrold Carswell to the U.S. Supreme Court. Brock won the election by a 51% to 47% margin.
and became vice president
and member of the board of directors, taught law at Vanderbilt University
1970–1972. He became chairman of Island Creek Coal Co., Lexington, Kentucky
, in 1972, and in his last years operated an antiques
store in Carthage. He died three weeks shy of his 91st birthday and is buried in Smith County Memorial Gardens in Carthage. Interstate 65
in the state has been named The Albert Arnold Gore Sr. Memorial Highway
in honor of him.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
, serving as a U.S. Representative
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
and a U.S. Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
for the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
from Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
.
Gore and his wife Pauline LaFon Gore
Pauline LaFon Gore
Pauline LaFon Gore was the mother of former United States Vice President Al Gore and the wife of former US Senator Al Gore, Sr.. She is credited with playing a significant role in both of their careers with Al Gore saying "there will never be a better campaigner than Pauline LaFon Gore"...
had two children: daughter Nancy LaFon Gore (born in 1938 and died of lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
in 1984) and a son Albert Gore Jr.
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
in 1948. Al Gore, Jr. would follow in his father's political footsteps in the Democratic Party representing Tennessee as a U.S. Representative and Senator, and later serving as Vice President
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
.
Early years and Congressional career
Gore was born in Granville, TennesseeGranville, Tennessee
Granville is an unincorporated community in Jackson County, Tennessee, United States. Granville was the birthplace of U.S. Senator Albert Gore, Sr., father of former Vice-President Al Gore....
, the third of five children of Allen Gore and Maggie Denny Gore. Gore's patrilineal ancestors were Scots-Irish who first settled in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
in the mid 17th-century and moved to Tennessee after the Revolutionary War. Gore studied at Middle Tennessee State Teachers College
Middle Tennessee State University
Middle Tennessee State University, commonly abbreviated as MTSU, is a public university located in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, United States....
and graduated from the Nashville Y.M.C.A. Night Law School, now the Nashville School of Law
Nashville School of Law
The Nashville School of Law, , is a private, night law school specializing in legal education for non-traditional, part-time, working professionals and others seeking a legal education...
. He first sought elective public office at age 23, when he ran unsuccessfully for the job of superintendent of schools in Smith County, Tennessee. A year later he was appointed to the position after the man who had defeated him died.
After serving as Tennessee Commissioner of Labor from 1936 to 1937 Gore was elected as a Democrat to the 76th Congress in 1938, re-elected to the two succeeding Congresses, and served from January 3, 1939 until his resignation on December 4, 1944 to enter the U.S. Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
.
Gore was re-elected to the 79th and to the three succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1945 to January 3, 1953). In 1951, Gore proposed in Congress that "something cataclysmic" be done by U.S. forces to end the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
: a radiation belt (created by nuclear weapon
Nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...
s) dividing the Korean peninsula permanently into two.
Gore was not a candidate for re-election but was elected in 1952 to the U.S. Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
. In his 1952 election, he defeated six-term incumbent Kenneth McKellar
Kenneth McKellar
Kenneth Douglas McKellar was an American politician from Tennessee who served as a United States Representative from 1911 until 1917 and as a United States Senator from 1917 until 1953...
. Gore's victory, coupled with that of Frank G. Clement
Frank G. Clement
Frank Goad Clement served as Governor of Tennessee from 1953 to 1959, and again from 1963 to 1967.-Early life:...
for governor of Tennessee over incumbent Gordon Browning
Gordon Browning
Gordon Weaver Browning was an American politician who represented Tennessee in the United States Congress and was later Governor of Tennessee from 1937 to 1939 and again from 1949 to 1953.-Biography:...
on the same day, is widely regarded as a major turning point in Tennessee political history and as marking the end of statewide influence for E. H. Crump
E. H. Crump
Edward Hull "Boss" Crump was an American politician from Memphis, Tennessee. He was mayor from 1910 through 1915, and again briefly in 1940; in the intervening years he effectively appointed the mayors.-Career:...
, the Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
political boss. During this term, Gore was instrumental in sponsoring and enacting the legislation creating the Interstate Highway System. Gore was re-elected in 1958 and again in 1964, and served from January 3, 1953, to January 3, 1971, after he lost reelection in 1970. In the Senate, he was chairman of the Special Committee on Attempts to Influence Senators during the 84th Congress.
Gore was one of only three Democratic senators from the 11 former Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
states who did not sign the 1956 Southern Manifesto
Southern Manifesto
The Southern Manifesto was a document written February–March 1956 by Adisen and Charles in the United States Congress opposed to racial integration in public places. The manifesto was signed by 101 politicians from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South...
opposing integration
Racial integration
Racial integration, or simply integration includes desegregation . In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportunity regardless of race, and the development of a culture that draws on diverse traditions, rather than merely...
, the other two being Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
(who was not asked to sign) and Gore's fellow Tennessean Estes Kefauver
Estes Kefauver
Carey Estes Kefauver July 26, 1903 – August 10, 1963) was an American politician from Tennessee. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in the U.S...
, who refused to sign. South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
Senator J. Strom Thurmond
Strom Thurmond
James Strom Thurmond was an American politician who served as a United States Senator. He also ran for the Presidency of the United States in 1948 as the segregationist States Rights Democratic Party candidate, receiving 2.4% of the popular vote and 39 electoral votes...
tried to get Gore to sign the Southern Manifesto, Gore refused. Gore could not, however, be regarded as an out-and-out integrationist
Racial integration
Racial integration, or simply integration includes desegregation . In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportunity regardless of race, and the development of a culture that draws on diverse traditions, rather than merely...
, having voted against some major civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
legislation including the Civil Rights Act of 1964
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a landmark piece of legislation in the United States that outlawed major forms of discrimination against African Americans and women, including racial segregation...
. He did support the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He had easily won renomination in 1958 over former governor of Tennessee Jim Nance McCord
Jim Nance McCord
Jim Nance McCord was an American journalist and politician who served one term in the U.S. House of Representatives and two terms as Governor of Tennessee ....
, which at that point was still tantamount to election
Tantamount to election
"Tantamount to election" is a phrase to describe a situation in which one political party so dominates the demographics of a voting district, that the person winning the party nomination for a race will virtually be assured of winning the general election...
(because of the traditional weakness of the Republican party in the post-Reconstruction South); by 1964 he faced an energetic Republican challenge from Memphian Dan Kuykendall
Dan Kuykendall
Dan Heflin Kuykendall was a U.S. Representative from Tennessee from 1967 to 1975. He was a member of the Republican Party....
, who ran a surprisingly strong race against him.
By 1970, Gore was considered to be fairly vulnerable for a three-term incumbent Senator, as a result of his liberal positions on many issues such as the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
and Civil Rights. This was especially risky, electorally, as at the time Tennessee was moving more and more towards the Republican Party. He faced a spirited primary
Primary election
A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
challenge, predominantly from former Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
news anchor Hudley Crockett, who used his broadcasting skills to considerable advantage and generally attempted to run to Gore's right. Gore fended off this primary challenge, but he was ultimately unseated in the 1970 general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
by Republican Congressman William E. Brock III
Bill Brock
William Emerson "Bill" Brock III is a former Republican United States senator from Tennessee, having served from 1971 to 1977. He is the grandson of William Emerson Brock I, who was a Democratic U.S. senator from Tennessee from 1929 to 1931.-Early life and career:Brock was a native of Chattanooga,...
. Gore was one of the key targets in the Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
/Agnew
Spiro Agnew
Spiro Theodore Agnew was the 39th Vice President of the United States , serving under President Richard Nixon, and the 55th Governor of Maryland...
"Southern strategy
Southern strategy
In American politics, the Southern strategy refers to the Republican Party strategy of winning elections in Southern states by exploiting anti-African American racism and fears of lawlessness among Southern white voters and appealing to fears of growing federal power in social and economic matters...
." He had earned Nixon's ire the year before when he criticized the administration's "do-nothing" policy toward inflation. In a memo to senior advisor Bryce Harlow
Bryce Harlow
Bryce Harlow was a congressional staff member, army officer, and businessman.He was born in 1916 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Harlow graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1938. Harlow then went to Washington, D.C., where he served on Capitol Hill as assistant librarian of the U.S. House of...
, Nixon aide Alexander Butterfield
Alexander Butterfield
Alexander Porter Butterfield is a retired U.S. military officer, public servant, and businessman. He served as the deputy assistant to President Richard Nixon from 1969 until 1973. He was a key figure in the Watergate scandal, but was not personally involved in any wrongdoing, and was not...
relayed the President's desire that Gore be "blistered" for his comment. Spiro T. Agnew traveled to Tennessee in 1970 to mock Gore as the "Southern regional chairman of the Eastern Liberal Establishment". Other prominent issues in this race included Gore's opposition to the Vietnam War, his vote against Sen. Everett Dirksen
Everett Dirksen
Everett McKinley Dirksen was an American politician of the Republican Party. He represented Illinois in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate...
's amendment on prayer in public schools, and his opposition to appointing Clement Haynsworth
Clement Haynsworth
Clement Furman Haynsworth, Jr. was a United States judge and an unsuccessful nominee for the United States Supreme Court....
and G. Harrold Carswell to the U.S. Supreme Court. Brock won the election by a 51% to 47% margin.
After Congress
After leaving Congress, Gore resumed the practice of law with Occidental PetroleumOccidental Petroleum
Occidental Petroleum Corporation is a California-based oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the United States, the Middle East, North Africa, and South America...
and became vice president
Vice president
A vice president is an officer in government or business who is below a president in rank. The name comes from the Latin vice meaning 'in place of'. In some countries, the vice president is called the deputy president...
and member of the board of directors, taught law at Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named for shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided Vanderbilt its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the...
1970–1972. He became chairman of Island Creek Coal Co., Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
, in 1972, and in his last years operated an antiques
Antiques
An antique is an old collectible item. It is collected or desirable because of its age , beauty, rarity, condition, utility, personal emotional connection, and/or other unique features...
store in Carthage. He died three weeks shy of his 91st birthday and is buried in Smith County Memorial Gardens in Carthage. Interstate 65
Interstate 65
Interstate 65 is a major Interstate Highway in the United States. The southern terminus is located at an intersection with Interstate 10 in Mobile, Alabama, and its northern terminus is at an interchange with Interstate 90 , U.S. Route 12, and U.S...
in the state has been named The Albert Arnold Gore Sr. Memorial Highway
Interstate 65 in Tennessee
Interstate 65 in Tennessee runs from Ardmore, Tennessee north to just south of Franklin, Kentucky, forming part of the national Interstate 65, which goes from Mobile, Alabama to Gary, Indiana. In Tennessee the highway's official name is The Albert Arnold Gore Sr...
in honor of him.
External links
- Washington Post "Political Junkie" column: answers questions about Gore's civil rights record
- "Casting a Long Shadow", by David M. Shribman: Boston Globe article describing 1970 congressional races of Al Gore Sr., and George H. W. BushGeorge H. W. BushGeorge Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
. - "Sons", by Nicholas Lemann: article on Albert A. Gore Jr.Al GoreAlbert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
, and George W. BushGeorge W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
, including some description of the former's relationship with his father. - FBI files on Albert Gore, Sr.
- The Life of Albert Gore, Sr.
- Oral History Interviews with Albert Gore http://docsouth.unc.edu/sohp/A-0321-1/menu.html, http://docsouth.unc.edu/sohp/A-0321-2/menu.html from Oral Histories of the American South