I think this is exactly why the Dems are whining about this ad. Ford also claimed to be a lawyer in one interview, and he's not. He did go to law school, but he never passed the bar, which is required before one actually becomes a lawyer.
Clintonian parsing of the truth isn't popular with a majority of Americans.
I think they're flipping because it makes Ford look like anything but a serious candidate. What little "gravitas" he had flew right out the window with the airing of that ad.