re: Gore
The first time I heard about him was when there were enquiries (which he presided) about the Hubble's mirror being flawed and the successive shuttle problems during 1990.
Al Gore has shown a constant interest for space and the environment. If Triana is still on the ground it's because republicans would only accept it if it were peer reviewed with lots of added scientific experiments wich made it a lot more expensive which helped its cancellation.
Gore opposed the war in Vietnam but went there anyway (that's 180 degrees opposite to some known republicans who approved of the war in Vietnan but managed not to go).