Reply #76: Her post seemed to imply that making money in the private sector

[Tom Rinaldo]

is the equivalent of "feathering ones own nest", even though it is public record that men like Clark and Gore are also doing unpaid political work on the behalf of the Democratic Party and various issues of public concern. Further her comment was made in the context of activities that should weigh against someone being worthy of receiving support as a potential Presidential candidate. Correct me if I am wrong but that was my read. And if it was my read, than likely it was other's also.

My post questioned those conclusions and noted that the accusation of "feathering ones own nest" when made on DU seems to be exclusively applied to Wesley Clark's activities, which is at best inconsistent and at worst disingenuous. Many here are promoting Al Gore for President in 2008 yet none accuse him of "feathering his own nest" with paid corporate connections.

I went to great pains in my original post to do two things. One is I clearly separated out the two issues that Julie raised in her first post; one concerning having been elected to public office before, and the other currently making money in the private sector. I acknowledged that Gore has held high elective offices, and I acknowledged that the fact that Clark hasn't is a valid topic for discussion. But I strongly believe that no one can deny that both men have devoted long lives to public service and should be equated in that regard. In that specific regard, as Chrunchy noted above, it is apples to apples.

The second point that I clearly made is that I greatly respect Gore (and obviously Clark also), and that I see absolutely no reason why Gore's current corporate activities should be held against him. No one is attacking Gore in that regard as far as I know and I'm certainly not doing so, but Clark does get attacked in that regard, and it seems to be a matter of selective targeted concern regarding Clark, with a free pass to anyone else. I thought that point was well illustrated by noting Gore's activities in this context.