May 19, 1997

Washington Squares

For the next eight weeks, MoJo Wire gives you the chance to test your prowess with political trivia, and win a <b>FREE</b> subscription to <i>Mother Jones</i> magazine. Every Tuesday we’ll have a new set of questions about a different politician, plus the answers and winners from the week before. Just make sure you play before 5 p.m. Pacific Time each Monday.

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This Week: Al Gore

Al GoreGrowing up inside the Beltway, the son of Senator Albert Gore, Sr. was destined for politics. A Harvard graduate and an Army journalist in Vietnam, Gore has a reputation for seriousness: At one time he reportedly devoted two hours a day to learning the technical details of nuclear arms control. And his studiousness has paid off — the advance for his best-selling environmentalist tract, Earth In The Balance, totalled $100,000.

But how well do you really know the Veep?

  1. How does Gore describe himself, politically?

    “a raging moderate”
    “a feminazi”
    “a tree hugger”
    “the L-word”
    “a techno-nerd”

  2. In 1987, how did former New Republic columnist Michael Kinsley describe Gore?

    “very lifelike”
    “Michael Dukakis without the sense of humor”
    “an old person’s idea of a young person”
    “an environmental wacko”
    “someone with the soul of a vice president”

  3. According to a joke in Washington, what is the Secret Service’s code name for Gore?

    “Second Banana”
    “Straight Arrow”
    “Cigar Store Indian”
    “Mr. Tipper”
    “Al Gore”

  4. In 1993, Gore appeared on the “Late Show with David Letterman.” What was the first question Letterman asked him?

    “Doesn’t it drive you crazy being an underling to a draft-dodging sleaze?”
    “Hey, have you taught Bill how to inhale?”
    “Don’t you have anything better to do than show up here?”
    “So, have you fixed the government?”
    “Clinton and Gore: Gone in Four?”

  5. Which of the following could Gore not put on his résumé?

    reporter for the Nashville Tennessean
    tobacco farmer
    Sierra Club member
    divinity student
    Angus beef farmer

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Ted Rueter is the author of several books on politics, including The Newt Gingrich Quiz Book and The Rush Limbaugh Quiz Book.

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WE CAME UP SHORT.

We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

Because the bottom line: Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the type of journalism Mother Jones exists to do. The only investors who won’t let independent, investigative journalism down are the people who actually care about its future—you.

And we hope you might consider pitching in before moving on to whatever it is you're about to do next. We really need to see if we'll be able to raise more with this real estate on a daily basis than we have been, so we're hoping to see a promising start.

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