Posted on 02/16/2005 9:57:44 AM PST by dead
Rep. Harold Ford Jr. (D-Tenn.) is expected to announce next week that he will run for the Senate, seeking to replace Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) when he retires in 2006.
Ford’s office declined to comment on his senatorial plans, but three sources close to Ford said that he has decided to run and that an announcement will be made soon. One informed source said, “He will absolutely, 100 percent, run for the Senate. He wants that seat.”
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Ford will be traveling in the Middle East later this week, according to those sources, and is scheduled to be back in Tennessee, with some major appearances planned, on Feb. 25.
President Bush won Tennessee 57 to 43 percent, and Ford would face an uphill battle to win statewide. The fifth-term congressman, whose father held the same seat for 22 years, has recently seen his statewide prospects hindered by his family name. His uncle, state Sen. John Ford, is embroiled in a child payment scandal and recently testified in juvenile court that he keeps two homes and lives with two different women whose children he fathered. The scandal has received considerable attention in Tennessee and has dominated political conversation among Democrats speculating about Ford’s plans.
The source said business leaders in Memphis are lining up behind Ford and noted that the congressman is conservative on fiscal matters. Ford last year indicated support for Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-S.C.) Social Security reform bill.
While the odds are against Ford’s winning the seat, the source said Ford will raise a lot of money: “He will raise money from California to New York to Florida and everywhere in between.”
State Sen. Rosalind Kurita is the only other Democrat who has entered the race. Three Republicans have launched their campaigns, including former Rep. Ed Bryant, state Rep. Beth Harwell and Chattanooga Mayor Bob Corker. Former Rep. Van Hilleary (R) is also considering jumping into the race.
My husband and I have always liked him. It is good to know what the truth is. Thank you.
Surprise, surprise. We've already known of his intention to run.
The GOP has two conservative seats possibly vulnerable.
Frist's vacant seat and Santorum's incumbency.
The GOP can win Frist's seat but we need a good candidate and strong campaign.
Santorum is going to be a battle to the death to maintain.
Yeah, but it's not picture ID. They'll take a social security card as ID - at least that's what I saw where I voted.
One of the reasons is the GOP won't put up a canidate against John Tanner. As long as Tanner keeps the Navy base in Millington the local GOP voters will continue to back him.
If you want to know the truth check the Memphis Commercial Appeal archives.
I'm originally from Memphis which is his district. He is not popular except in his district. I don't believe he will ever be elected as a State Senator. Tennessee is strongly Republican at this point. Well, unless something changes.
THERE YOU GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
All you have to do is look at his Eagle Forum, NRA and American Conservative Union scores to know that he is a liberal. Junior is the media's darling, he's good looking, soft spoken and talks in circles.
I hope you are correct.
I'm a Texan who has lived in a Memphis suburb since 1987. He can win in Tennessee. He is a very smooth talker who sounds conservative when he needs to. If you live in Tennessee you realize that the TV and papers here are liberal and would support Ford. He most certainly can win here, the Ford Machine should not be easily dismissed as you seem to want to do.
You like Harold Ford because you don't live in Memphis.
Thats like putting a wolf and a panther on the same ticket.
Make no mistake, they would see each other as competition and rivals, not as friends.
Think of it this way, notice how Frist gets annoyed when people mention that he's no longer the only doctor in the senate anymore. He doesn't like it.
He promised 2 terms, and 2 terms only.
In other words, he's running for President.
Since he is running for Prez, it would look really bad if his seat went to a Dem, so I expect him to do all he can to keep it in GOP hands.
Not a chance in a million that Jr. is a homosexual. Not with his prolific family. Father's day in the Ford family is caous
Ford definitely gets the "face time" on all of the major news networks including Fox. My take is that he is smart, ambitious but unelectable in the South.
LOL
You do know he is the Guinness World record holder for most handshakes in a day right?
Harold Ford Jr. would not make a good pimple on Tony Blair's butt.
Well thank goodness, we do not need another wimp like Lamar.
I'm not so sure.
Gore and Kerry had absolutley no charisma (hell, even Gores friends and family made jokes about it). Gore came within a few hundred dead folks of winning. Kerry was just a left wing loser.
I'm really starting to think, the charisma thing is over rated. Senator Frist does scare democrats because of his polling with women and minorites.
I think the charisma knock is an attempt to drag him down, since they can't find anything on him.
That said, I think George Allen would make a fine president, though deep down, I would probably prefer Governor Sanford.
Its pretty much unoffical, but Richardson is all but undeclared as a canidate in 2008.
He will be running for the nomination, against Hillary. I wonder if he will do a "Kiss up and go for the VP" type campaign ala John Edwards, or actually be agressive.
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