Vice President Al Gore will discuss Social Security reform during a mid-day forum in Des Moines. The expected democrat nominee for president was expected in Iowa last night, but Gore was called to Washington in case there was a close vote in the U-S Senate on a hate crimes proposal. As Vice President, Gore serves as President of the U-S Senate, but a few republicans joined democrats to approve a bill strengthening the federal hate crime law, so Gore’s tie-breaking vote wasn’t needed. The bill adds sexual orientation, gender and disability as potential reasons for which so-called “hate” crimes might be motivated.Gore spoke by phone last night for eight minutes with the 100 democrats who gathered at the Des Moines airport for a rally. Later today, Gore will review the Social Security reform plan he’s advancing.George W. Bush, Gore’s expected republican rival, suggests it’s time to let Americans take some of their Social Security taxes and invest the money on their own.
