How to explain the unexpected divorce of Al and Tipper Gore? Here's the No. 1 theory: George W. Bush did it. Family friend Sally Quinn tells CBS News that the couple simply never recovered from losing the 2000 election. “He's obviously suffered a lot,” Quinn said. “He'll never get over that, and neither will she.” Conservatives are predictably outraged.
But beyond “blame Bush,” there aren't many theories out there. Friends of both vigorously deny that either took a hike on the Appalachian Trail, according to Time. The couple has been saying they just grew apart. “I know people are feeling surprised, but there’s just not a lot of drama behind this,” one adviser told the New York Times. “They remain very close friends.” (More Al Gore stories.)