Why doesn't he just make it official?

The reprehensible Harold Ford once again comes down on the side of Republicans today. He has an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal about jobs, or allegedly about jobs, and he takes the opportunity to parrot the Republican myth that regulations are the obstacle to job creation.

Former U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln has argued forcefully in favor of an independent review process for proposed regulations. If the costs outweigh the benefits, they shoulhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifd be eliminated. In the meantime, a moratorium on new regulations that don't immediately protect public safety is a reasonable step that could be taken until our economy gets back on its feet.

I don't know why Ford doesn't just make it official and stop pretending to be a Democrat.

Harold Ford for Senate, Take Two

Harold Ford has created a web page for his nascent Senate run, including a page where you can sign a petition urging him to run.

Forty-five signatures so far, but I'm guessing that not all of them are sincere:

Gordon Gecko, 15, 14

Donald Corleone, Out of State

Holden McGroyn, New York's 14th district

Gen. Jack D. Ripper (Ret.), Out of State

George W Bush, Out of State

Nottah Chanse, New York's 14th district

Harold Isfullofshit, 8, 14

So maybe you want to sign, either for yourself or one of your alter egos? I noticed that Dick Hertz hasn't signed yet.

Late update: the count is down to 36 signatures, so they've clearly weeded the list, but I notice that Dick Hertz has made an appearance.

Random Thoughts

They might not each be worth their own diary, but I didn't want to ignore them.

1. One big difference between Obama and Bush:

Bush lies, Obama tells the truth. Say what you like about Obama's war plans (and most of us around here disagree with them), but at least Obama put the costs in the budget instead of trying to pretend they aren't part of the deficit.

2. More good news for Evan Bayh wannabe Harold Ford.

Picks up the coveted Karl Rove endorsement.

3. Economy drives booze sales downmarket.

According to one conoisseur, "we've switched from Bud Light to a lesser brand."

Rational Resistance wonders: Is that even possible?

Harold Ford for Senate? NFW!

UPDATED WITH MORE ECONOMIC ROYALIST GOODIES

Since this diary was posted Harold Ford has published an op-ed piece in the Times, and he does nothing but solidify his image as purely a Evan Bayh-type Republican masquerading as a Democrat.

Among his policy prescriptions: slash capital gains and dividend tax rates; slash corporate tax rates; and enact "sensible" health care reform, such as capitulating to insurance companies on malpractice liability.

Who the hell needs this? Not our party, that's for sure.

And I say that even though we went to the same law school.

We've covered Harold Ford here before, or, to be specific, we've discussed the vile racist tactics the Republicans used against him when he was running for Senate in 2006. Truly disgusting, but in no way surprising for the heirs to Nixon's Southern Strategy.

This does not, though, imply any endorsement of Ford's positions. Once again he's considering running for Senate, from New York this time, and we can be happy that he doesn't seem to be getting any traction.

Former Rep. Harold Ford Jr., D-Tenn., has been getting a lot of press lately, ever since he began publicly mulling a Senate bid in New York, where he now lives. But that attention hasn't yet translated into solid poll numbers -- according to a Marist poll released Friday, in a Democratic primary matchup, incumbent Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has a lead over Ford that stretches into the double-digits.

The results, which show 43 percent of New York Democrats saying they would vote for Gillibrand in the primary and just 24 percent reporting that they would cast their ballot for Ford, don't suggest that a Gillibrand victory is inevitable, though. The primary isn't for another eight months and fully one third of New York Democrats remain undecided.

Of course Gillibrand was a Blue Dog when she was in the House, which means we wouldn't ordinarily be supporting her for anything. Still, a look at the latest extensive interview of Harold Ford in the Times shows some serious problems with him.

On taxes:

As it relates to big issues: I think there ought to be a huge-tax cut bill for business people, not only in New York but across the country.

I think immediately, we need to lower the corporate tax rate from 35 to 25 percent. We need to make clear that dividends and capital-gains taxes not go up — we do not want to see decisions made that are rash.

On abortion rights:

A. If my daughter, my 15-year-old daughter, is taken to the hospital, to get an abortion, I would hope as a minor, I would know it. If she can’t get into a movie to see an R or NC-17 movie, at 15, I would hope that I would know if she was going to the doctor to have this kind of procedure performed. Not to give you my answer. But if I said yea or nay. I support my family. But I would want to know that. So that is why I voted in favor of parental consent.

Q. Partial-birth abortion. You have objections to it?

A. I do.


Essentially no discussion of foreign policy in the whole interview. Still, there is nothing there that makes him look like anything but a conservative DINO. It's hard to see why it would be a good thing for him to get in. I'm glad to see that Chuck Schumer is working to try to keep Ford out of the race.