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Al Gore accosts Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick after Trump official’s Davos speech

Former Vice President Al Gore briefly accosted Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick after the Trump official’s speech on the sidelines of this week’s World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, The Post has learned.

During a Tuesday VIP dinner hosted by billionaire BlackRock boss Larry Fink, where several hundred people were invited, Lutnick delivered a speech that was fiercely critical of European allies.

When he stepped offstage, Gore walked up to him and said, “Boo” – like he was trying to scare him, a source told The Post.


Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore attends the 56th annual World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting in Davos.
Former Vice President Al Gore briefly accosted Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick after the Trump official’s speech on the sidelines of this week’s World Economic Forum in Davos, Switazlerand, The Post has learned. REUTERS

Lutnick laughed and someone at the event remarked, “What an honor to have Al Gore boo,” according to an insider.

The ex-veep confirmed he’d disliked the speech.

“I sat and listened to his remarks,” the avid environmentalist told The Post in a statement.

“I didn’t interrupt him in any way. It’s no secret that I think this administration’s energy policy is insane. And at the end of his speech I reacted with how I felt, and so did several others.”


US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick speaking at the World Economic Forum.
During a VIP dinner Tuesday, Lutnick delivered a speech that was fiercely critical of European allies, according to a Reuters report. AFP via Getty Images

According to media reports, a number of other crowd members booed while attendees including European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde left the dinner before dessert was served. Fink reportedly tried to calm the audience as guests made for the exits.

But a Commerce Department spokesperson and a BlackRock exec said Lagarde actually left before the remarks.

“No one left hastily. Only one person booed and it was Al Gore,” a Commerce rep told The Post.

Lagarde reportedly made a dash for the door as Lutnick argued that Europe was losing global influence – adding to tensions as President Trump ramped up his threats to take over Greenland.

Just a day before the speech, the commercial secretary wrote a bold opinion piece for the Financial Times, stating: “We are here at Davos to make one thing crystal clear: With President Trump, capitalism has a new sheriff in town.”

“For far too long, the fate of the global economy has been decided by an international establishment who took America’s economic power and gave it to the rest of the world,” he wrote.

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