Harold Ford Jr.
Harold Ford Jr. | |
---|---|
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Tennessee's 9th district | |
In office January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2007 | |
Preceded by | Harold Ford Sr. |
Succeeded by | Steve Cohen |
Personal details | |
Born | Harold Eugene Ford Jr. May 11, 1970 Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse |
Emily Threlkeld (m. 2008) |
Children | 2 |
Education | University of Pennsylvania (BA) University of Michigan (JD) |
Website | Official website |
Harold Eugene Ford Jr. (born May 11, 1970)[1] is an American financial managing director, pundit, author, and former U.S. Congressman who served from 1997–2007 in the United States House of Representatives as a member of the Democratic Party from Tennessee's 9th congressional district, centered in Memphis. He is a member of the Ford political family from Memphis, and is the son of former Congressman Harold Ford Sr., who held the same seat for 22 years. In 2006, Ford made an unsuccessful bid for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by the retiring Bill Frist. He was also the last chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC).[2]
Between 2011 and 2017, Ford worked for Morgan Stanley as a managing director.[3] He also regularly appeared on television on politically related programs on NBC's Meet the Press, MSNBC, CNN, CNBC.[4]
On December 1, 2020, Ford was named Vice Chairman of Corporate & Institutional Banking at PNC Financial Services. He and his wife live in New York City and have a daughter, Georgia Walker,[citation needed] and a son, Harold Eugene III.[5]
Ford also wrote a book, More Davids Than Goliaths: A Political Education, published in 2010.[6]
In April 2021, Ford joined Fox News as a political contributor.[7] He frequently appears on Special Report as a panel member and was named a co-host of The Five in January 2022.[8]
Family and education
Ford was born in Memphis, Tennessee, the eldest son of former Representative Harold Ford Sr. and Dorothy Bowles Ford.[9] He has two brothers, Jake and Isaac, as well as two half-siblings, Andrew and Ava, from his father's second marriage.
The Ford family has long been prominent in Memphis's black community. Ford's grandfather, N. J. Ford, established a funeral home, which gave the family a broad network in the community.
Ford lived the first years of his life within the living quarters of his family-owned business N.J. Ford And Sons Funeral Home, which at the time was located in the
Early career and legal education
After graduation, Ford went into government, serving as a staff aide to the
Ford returned to university for a
House of Representatives career
When Harold Sr. decided not to seek a 12th term in Congress in 1996, Harold Jr. entered the race and became the favorite in the Democratic primary, which was widely regarded as the real contest in the heavily Democratic, black-majority 9th district. Ford arranged his schedule for his last semester of law school so he would not have Monday or Friday classes
On 4 November 1999, Ford voted in favor of the
On October 10, 2002, he was among the 81 House Democrats who voted in favor of authorizing the invasion of Iraq.
After the Democrats lost seven Congressional seats in the
A June 7, 2005, article in The Washington Times reported that from 1998 to 2003, Ford took 61 privately funded trips but did not file travel disclosure forms with the House clerk for the trips, as required by the chamber's ethics rules, until August 2003. Ford's office called the late filings a "mere oversight", since Ford had filed the required financial disclosure statements for the trips at the time they occurred.[23]
In November 2005, when Ohio Republican Congresswoman Jean Schmidt implied that Pennsylvania Democrat John Murtha was a "coward" in response to Murtha's proposal for a withdrawal of American forces from Iraq, Ford charged across the House floor to the Republican side during the resulting uproar in the chamber, shouting "Say it to Murtha!" (or "Say Murtha's name!" depending on the source) while waving his finger at Schmidt. He had to be restrained by fellow Democrat Dave Obey of Wisconsin. Like many Democrats, Ford believed Schmidt's remarks (which she later withdrew) were an unwarranted "cheap shot" against Murtha, a veteran of the Marine Corps.[24]
He supported the Republican effort to intercede in the
In addition, Ford sat on the House Budget Committee and the House Committee on Financial Services. He also served on the Transformation Advisory Group, a group of political, military and academic leaders who worked with the Department of Defense to assess the needs of the armed forces. Ford was a member of the New Democrat Coalition, the Congressional Black Caucus and the Blue Dog Coalition.[11]
In 2002, Ford was mentioned as a possible Democratic candidate for the Senate seat being vacated by Fred Thompson, but he declined to run. Instead, he supported fellow Congressman Bob Clement who would lose to former Republican Governor Lamar Alexander in the general election.[28]
In 2006, Ford did not run for re-election to the House of Representatives, due to his campaign for the United States Senate in Tennessee. Although he won the Democratic primary, he lost the general election by a margin of 2.7%. His younger brother, Jake Ford, ran for the 9th district seat as an Independent, but lost to Democrat Steve Cohen.
2006 United States Senate campaign
On April 6, 2005, during an interview on C-SPAN's call-in show Washington Journal, Ford confirmed that he would be running for the United States Senate.[29] He filed the papers necessary to officially begin his Senate campaign on May 25, 2005.
Democratic State Senator
.Ford faced Republican Bob Corker in the November 2006 election. Not long after Corker's primary victory was assured, Ford challenged Corker to seven televised debates across the state. In response, Corker said he would debate Ford, though he did not agree to seven debates.[citation needed]
In October 2006,
the Republican Party ran radio and television ads characterized by some as racist. A radio spot, referred to by critics as the "jungle drums" ad, had drums playing when Ford's name was mentioned and patriotic music when Corker's name was spoken. This ad was criticized as attacking Ford's race by evoking images of primitive, chanting African tribes.
Corker and Ford participated in a televised debate in Memphis on October 7, in Corker's hometown of Chattanooga on October 10, and in Nashville on October 28. In January 2006, NBC's Meet the Press extended an open invitation for the candidates to debate on the nationally televised show.
On November 8, Ford conceded the election to Corker, who defeated Ford by less than three percentage points.[35]
Post-congressional activities
In December 2006, the Los Angeles Times reported that Ford told students at an L.A.-area school that he might run again in 2008 for the Senate seat held by Republican Lamar Alexander, but in January 2007 Ford said that he had no plans to challenge the incumbent.[36][37] Instead, Ford has said that he "hopes to spend a lot of time at home, perhaps do some teaching and work with Governor Bredesen on some issues in Tennessee."[38]
On January 25, 2007, Ford was named chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council.[39]
In March 2007, Ford joined the financial services firm
Ford was appointed visiting professor of public policy at
Ford worked at the Wall Street firm Morgan Stanley as a managing director.[48] In late 2017, erroneous media reports said that he was fired for sexual misconduct[49][50] and Morgan Stanley issued a statement the following month saying that no sexual misconduct took place.[51] In January 2018, The New York Times reported that Ford reached a legal settlement with Morgan Stanley.[52][51]
Ford is on the Board of Selectors of Jefferson Awards for Public Service.[53] He is also a member of the ReFormers Caucus of Issue One.[54]
2010 United States Senate election
Ford considered a
On February 5, 2010, Gillibrand held a press conference at which she raised questions as to whether Ford, as an executive of Merrill Lynch, received taxpayer-backed bonuses from Bank of America, stemming from the federal bailout. She was joined by New York City Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, who endorsed her candidacy.[56]
On February 12, it was reported that Ford's NBC contract was suspended due to his potential campaign, and that he had taken an unpaid leave of absence from Merrill Lynch for the same reason.[57] On March 1, Ford stated in an op-ed article published by The New York Times that he would not run against Gillibrand.[58][59]
Personal life
Ford married Emily Threlkeld, who works in public relations for
Electoral history
Year | Democrat | Votes | Pct | Republican | Votes | Pct | 3rd Party | Party | Votes | Pct | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1996
|
Harold E. Ford Jr. | 116,345 | 61% | Rod DeBerry | 70,951 | 37% | Silky Sullivan | Independent
|
957 | 1% | * | |||
1998
|
Harold E. Ford Jr. | 75,428 | 79% | Claude Burdikoff | 18,078 | 19% | Gwendolyn L. Moore | Independent
|
932 | 1% | * | |||
2000
|
Harold E. Ford Jr. | 143,298 | 100% | (no candidate) | * | |||||||||
2002
|
Harold E. Ford Jr. | 120,904 | 84% | (no candidate) | Tony Rush | Independent
|
23,208 | 16% | * | |||||
2004
|
Harold E. Ford Jr. | 190,648 | 82% | Ruben M. Fort | 41,578 | 18% | * |
*Write-in and minor candidate notes: In 1996, Mary D. Taylor received 498 votes; Anthony Burton received 424 votes; Greg Voehringer received 327 votes; Tom Jeanette received 222 votes; Del Gill received 199 votes; Bill Taylor received 179 votes; Johnny E. Kelly received 156 votes; Don Fox received 146 votes; and write-ins received 10 votes. In 1998, Johnny Kelly received 775 votes; Greg Voehringer received 567 votes; and write-ins received 2 votes. In 2000, write-ins received 36 votes. In 2002, write-ins received 148 votes. In 2004, Jim Maynard received 166 votes.
2006 Democratic Primary for U.S. Senate (TN)
- Harold Ford Jr., 79%
- Gary G. Davis, 10%
- John Jay Hooker, 6%
Year | Democrat | Votes | Pct | Republican | Votes | Pct | 3rd Party | Party | Votes | Pct | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2006
|
Harold Ford Jr. | 879,976 | 48% | Bob Corker | 929,911 | 51% | Ed Choate | Independent
|
10,831 | 1% | * |
*Write-in and minor candidate notes: In 2006, David "None of the Above" Gatchell received 3,746 votes, Emory "Bo" Heyward received 3,580 votes, H. Gary Keplinger received 3,033 votes and Chris Lugo (Green) received 2,589 votes.
See also
- "30 Something" Working Group
- List of African-American United States representatives
References
- ^ "FORD, Harold, Jr. - Biographical Information". bioguide.congress.gov.
- ^ a b c Barbaro, Michael, "Harold Ford Jr. Weighs a Challenge to Gillibrand", The New York Times, January 5, 2010
- ^ "Former U.S. Congressman Harold Ford, Jr. Joins Morgan Stanley". Morgan Stanley.
- ^ Meet the Press. "Former Rep. Harold Ford (D-TN) on Meet the Press On the Keystone XL Pipeline". Archived from the original on 2021-11-04. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
- ^ a b "Harold Ford Jr. for Mayor?". June 1, 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
- ^ "More Davids Than Goliaths: A Political Education". Amazon. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
- ^ Allison, Natalie (April 13, 2021). "Harold Ford Jr., former Tennessee congressman, joins Fox News as contributor". The Tennessean. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
- ^ "Jeanine Pirro Named Co-host of the Five with Liberal Seat to Rotate Between Harold Ford Jr, Geraldo Rivera, and Jessica Tarlov" (Press release). 12 January 2022.
- ^ Reitwiesner, William Addams. "Ancestry of Harold Ford". Retrieved 2007-05-18.
- ^ de la Cruz, Bonna (2005-08-01). "Political future of Fords hinges on constituents". The Tennessean. Retrieved 2007-05-18. [dead link]
- ^ a b "Congressman Harold Ford, Jr. :: 9th District of Tennessee :: Biography". Archived from the original on 2006-09-02. Retrieved 2006-09-08.
- ^ "Ford, Harold Jr". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 2007-05-18.
- ^ Abramson, Roger (2004-06-03). "Harold Ford Jr., Prince of Memphis". Nashville Scene. Archived from the original on 2007-05-20. Retrieved 2007-05-18.
- ^ Badash, David (April 29, 2014). "Harold Ford Failed The Bar Exam – That Explains So Much…". The New Civil Rights Movement. Retrieved 2021-09-13.
- ^ "Harold Ford's Rising Star Heads Toward the Senate". Democratic Party. August 2006. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-05-18.
- ^ Ferullo, Mike (2000-08-16). "Ford appeals to younger voters in keynote address". CNN. Archived from the original on 2007-01-08. Retrieved 2007-05-18.
- ^ "S. 900 (106th): Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act -- House Vote #570 -- Nov 4, 1999". GovTrack.us.
- ^ "Who's Whining Now? Economists Hit Gramm". abcnews.go.com.
- ^ Paletta, Damian; Scannell, Kara (March 10, 2009). "Ten Questions for Those Fixing the Financial Mess". The Wall Street Journal.
- ^ http://www.tnr.com/doc.mhtml?i=20021125&s=lizza112502] [dead link]
- ^ "Democrats pick Pelosi as House leader". CNN. November 14, 2002. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
- ^ "John J. Miller on Election 2004 & Vice President on National Review Online". nationalreview.com.
- ^ "Lawmakers dash to correct records of trips". The Washington Times.
- ^ Fineman, Howard, "Bush at the Tipping Point", Newsweek, November 28, 2005
- ^ "Key Votes". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
- ^ "Harold Ford on the Issues". Ontheissues.org.
- ^ ">> HaroldFordJr.com | Harold on the Issues<<". Archived from the original on 2006-09-06. Retrieved 2006-09-08.
- ^ "CNN - Breaking News, Latest News and Videos". CNN.
- ^ "C-SPAN.org: Search Results". C-span.org.
- ^ 4/12/2006 - Rosalind Kurita Withdraws From U.S. Senate Race Archived 2006-08-25 at the Wayback Machine, The Chattanoogan
- ^ Sargent, Greg, "TN-SEN: Corker Radio Ad Has "Jungle Drums" During Mentions Of Ford" Archived 2011-07-16 at the Wayback Machine, Talking Points Memo, October 25, 2006, Retrieved February 23, 2010
- ^ A.C. Kleinheider (21 October 2006). "Too Hot For Corker". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-11-04.
- ^ Johnson, Alex, "Tennessee ad ignites internal GOP squabbling", NBC News, October 25, 2006, Retrieved February 23, 2010
- ^ O’Donnell, Norah, "GOP retires ‘Playboy’ ad in Tennessee", NBC News, October 25, 2006, Retrieved February 23, 2010
- ^ "Elections 2006". CNN. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
- ^ Richard Locker, "Another Senate seat might tempt Ford", The Commercial Appeal, December 11, 2006
- ^ "Ford says he has no plans of a Senate bid against Alexander". WMCTV.com. Associated Press. 2007-01-23. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved 2007-02-06.
- ^ "Corker sworn in as U.S. Senator". Associated Press. January 4, 2007. Retrieved on Jan. 7, 2007
- ^ "DLC: Harold e. Ford, Jr". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-01-25.
- ^ Keoun, Bradley,Merrill Hires Former U.S. Congressman Ford as Adviser, Bloomberg.com, February 14, 2007.
- ^ Merrill Lynch (2007-02-14). Former Congressman Harold E. Ford Jr. Joins Merrill Lynch as Vice Chairman. Merrill Lynch press release, 14 February 2007. Retrieved from http://www.ml.com/index.asp?id=7695_7696_8149_74412_75268_75567 Archived 2010-01-02 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ Flyer Staff. "Ford Junior To Become "Fair and Balanced" Commentator". Memphis Flyer.
- ^ "Harold Ford Jr. Jumps From FNC to MSNBC". mediabistro.com. 2008-03-24. Archived from the original on October 12, 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-27.
- ^ Vanderbilt News Service Harold Ford Jr. to be visiting professor of public policy at Vanderbilt; Congressional veteran to teach class on political leadership. 1/15/2007
- ^ "LBJ School of Public Affairs Announces Appointment of Congressman Harold Ford Jr. Inaugural Barbara Jordan Visiting Professor". Utexas.edu. Archived from the original on 8 November 2007. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
- ^ Cabrera, Debra (2009-11-05). "PNP Course Highlights: Spring 2010" (PDF). Wagner.nyu.edu. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
- ^ "Harold Ford | the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan". Archived from the original on 2015-09-15. Retrieved 2015-09-14.
- ^ Faber, David (22 February 2011). "Harold Ford Jr. Leaving BofA for Morgan Stanley". CNBC. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
- ^ Atkinson, Claire (7 December 2017). "Harold Ford Jr. blasts misconduct claim that led to firing by Morgan Stanley". NBC. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
- ^ Ali, Yashar. "Exclusive: Former Congressman Harold Ford Jr. Fired For Misconduct By Morgan Stanley". Huffington Post. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
- ^ a b Kelly, Kate (22 January 2018). "Morgan Stanley Says Harold Ford Jr. Wasn't Fired for Sexual Misconduct". The New York Times. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
- ^ Kelly, Kate; Sorkin, Andrew (January 11, 2018). "A Wall St. Executive's Downfall Seemed Sudden. It Was Years in the Making". The New York Times. Retrieved January 20, 2018.
- ^ "Jefferson Awards Foundation". Archived from the original on 2014-08-22. Retrieved 2013-12-04.
- ^ "Issue One – ReFormers Caucus". Retrieved 2019-11-07.
- ^ a b Barbaro, Michael and Hernandez, Raymond (January 7, 2010), "Potential Ford Senate Bid Sets Off Scramble", The New York Times, Retrieved March 1, 2010.
- ^ Paybarah, Azi (February 5, 2010), "Gillibrand: Disclosing Bonus is 'Essential' for Ford", The New York Observer, Retrieved February 14, 2010
- The Politico, Retrieved February 14, 2010
- ^ Ford, Harold Jr. (March 1, 2010), "Why I’m Not Running for the Senate", The New York Times, Retrieved March 1, 2010
- ^ Bacon, Perry Jr. (March 2, 2010) "Ford won't challenge Gillibrand for Senate in N.Y.", The Washington Post, Retrieved March 2, 2010
- ^ Report, Electronic Urban. "Black Entertainment News - EURWeb.com". EURweb.
- ^ "Election Statistics". Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives. Retrieved 2007-08-08.
- ^ "Official election results" (PDF). State.tn.us.
External links
- Official Website
- United States Congress. "Harold Ford Jr. (id: F000262)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- Appearances on C-SPAN