dangerous thoughts

Some clips this morning that caught my eye:

1) The Wall Street Journal editorial page surveys the bustling Democratic presidential field and concludes that it is still Hillary versus the world. It's always interesting and often instructive to see things from the other side -- something many liberal party purists don't seem to get. One graph in the Journal editorial in particular stood out to me:

If we were betting on a wild card challenger, we'd look instead to Al Gore. The former Vice President has been coy about his intentions. But he might be getting a ton of free publicity for his global warming "documentary" come Oscar time, and there's little doubt he could raise money if he got in. Unlike Mrs. Clinton, there are a lot of Democrats who feel passionately about him and his near-win in 2000.

I have been saying something similar for some time, and will elaborate on my reasons why in the near future. For now, though, it's significant that even the Gore-mockers at the Journal are keeping their eyes on the former Veep.

2) The New York Post plays up New York Mayor Bloomberg's call to end teacher tenure as we know it in the city's public schools.

Bloomberg, in his State of the City Address, outlined a plan to work with the United Federation of Teachers to tighten standards for granting tenure - which he suggested is too often awarded by default, not on merit.

"We must do a better job of keeping new teachers who are effective instructors . . . but we must also make sure that ineffective teachers are not awarded the privilege of tenure and the near-lifetime job security that comes with it," Bloomberg said.

This is yet another example of why Bloomberg could be an intriguing wild-card should he choose to run for president as an independent. Time and again, he has shown remarkable courage in taking on big fights, particularly when it comes to turning around the city's dysfunctional public school system, without handwringing over the potential political fallout. It's enough to make you forget, to borrow the Mayor's own words, that he is a short Jewish billionaire with a bad voice.