Harold Ford Jr. news stories on Newser

Ford: I'll Stand Down, but Democrats Are Out of Touch

Rob Quinn — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 04:00:00 CST

A bare-knuckled Democratic primary battle in New York would only strengthen the Republicans and risk losing a Senate seat, Harold Ford Jr. writes, explaining why he decided to drop out of the race. But in standing down he takes a broad swipe at party insiders who tried to bully him...

Ford Won't Run for NY Senate Seat After All

Will McCahill — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:48:00 CST

Harold Ford Jr., the former congressman and political commentator who’s been making waves in New York political circles since moving from Tennessee, won’t challenge fellow Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand for her US Senate seat after all. “I heard from Harold Ford and he has decided not to run,” a source tells...

5 More GOP Routes to a Senate Majority

Harry Kimball — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 10:42:08 CST

The decision by Indiana Senator Evan Bayh not to seek reelection has put 10 Democratic seats—and the majority—firmly in reach of Republicans in the upcoming election. Politico looks at 5 most likely to make the job easier for the GOP: Arkansas: Blanche Lincoln trailed a likely GOP challenger...

Pols Use Dubious TV Gigs to Prep for Elections

Harry Kimball — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 09:40:27 CST

In a trend that crosses party and network lines while raising a bevy of ethical questions, potential candidates for elected office are finding easy employment as cable news analysts. Fox News leads the pack, with three former office holders widely seen as possible future candidates: Mike Huckabee, Newt Gingrich, and...

Schumer's Wall Street Donors Look for Revenge

John Johnson — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 17:57:20 CST

Chuck Schumer is making enemies in high places among "his wealthiest and most powerful constituents," writes Chris Smith. These Wall Street honchos have long poured money into Schumer's campaign coffers, but now they think he's not doing enough to protect them from regulation attempts. “Chuck says, ‘I’ve been there to...

Colbert to Harold Ford: Hi, Flip-Flopper

Evann Gastaldo — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 09:35:34 CST

Harold Ford Jr. got the coveted "Colbert bump" last night when he appeared on the Colbert Report to discuss his possible New York Senate run—but probably not in quite the way he expected. Colbert, who started off by noting that "evidently, six minutes at my interview table counts as...

Gillibrand Is Coakley 2.0

Kevin Spak — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 13:11:00 CST

Kirsten Gillibrand bears a lot of unfortunate similarities to Martha Coakley, and could soon suffer the same fate. Like Coakley, she assumes she’s in for a cakewalk, with the full weight of her party behind her in a mostly-blue state. And like Coakley, she has “dreadful communication skills,” writes Steve...

NY Senate Race Gets Ugly Fast

Kevin Spak — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 11:34:19 CST

Kirsten Gillibrand isn’t playing nice anymore. The New York Democrat is heeding advisers’ counsel and going for the jugular against Senate primary opponent Harold Ford Jr., who’s been lobbing bombs faster than she can keep up. Until now, Gillibrand’s mostly attacked Ford through proxies, generating little buzz in New York’s...

Obama Pulls Strings for 2010 Favorites

Kevin Spak — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 12:33:21 CST

The White House is hard at work behind the scenes to put its preferred candidates in place for the 2010 elections. Obama’s team has quietly leaned on weak candidates to bow out and strong ones to bow in, the Wall Street Journal reports. When John Cherry withdrew from the Michigan...