Environmental Al Gore Is Back

Gore, however, disagreed with Sen. John Kerry's, D-Mass., call to withdraw all U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of the year.

"I would pursue the twin objectives of trying to withdraw our forces as quickly as we possibly can, while at the same time minimizing the risk that we'll make the mess over there even worse and raise even higher the danger of civil war," Gore said.

Dismissing calls for any deadline, Gore added, "It's possible that setting a deadline could set in motion forces that would make it even worse. I think that we should analyze that very carefully. My guess is that a deadline is probably not the right approach; but again, you have to weigh that question in the context of how the political decisions are made between the Congress and the executive branch. Sometimes the Congress itself has blunt instruments and limited options to play a role in matters like this."

Regarding another hot political topic, the NSA wiretap surveillance program, Gore inched back from his previous statements that indicated he thought the issue was an impeachable offense.

"That's for Congress to decide," Gore told Stephanopoulos. "From what we know about it, it's hard not to conclude that it's a violation of the law."

When asked by Stephanopoulos how America would be most different had Gore become president, the former politician said, "It's hard to look in a crystal ball and see what would have happened."

He quickly turned the subject back to his pet cause.

"Let's just take the question of global warming," Gore said. "I would have urged the Congress and done my best to lead the country to take on this climate crisis, become independent of carbon-based fossil fuels as quickly as we can, to shift towards conservation, efficiency and renewable energy.

"I'm under no illusions that there is any position in the world with as much influence as that of president of the United States," Gore added. "But I ran for president twice, and I was in politics for a quarter century, and I honestly believe that the highest and best use of my skills and experience is to try to change the minds of people in the U.S. and elsewhere in the world about this planetary emergency that we simply have to confront."