NY-Sen-B: Ford Won’t Run; Wants to Spend More Time With His Helicopter

Turns out money can’t buy you love:

Under intense pressure from Democratic Party officials, Harold E. Ford Jr., the former Tennessee congressman, has decided not to challenge Sen. Kirsten E. Gillibrand in the primary this fall, according to two people told of his plans.

He has told friends that, while he is convinced he could prevail against Ms. Gillibrand, he feared the winner of the primary would have little money and remain highly vulnerable to a well-financed Republican challenger at a time when the Democratic party controls the Senate by a slim majority.

Ford was coming under increasing pressure from the Democratic establishment not to run, and looks to have finally seen the futility of a run. While he initially seemed emboldened by the pressure, polls never showed him making a big dent against Gillibrand. After his terrible rollout (only Dan Coats can really compete for that title in this cycle) — coming off as an entitled and rather out-of-touch elite in interview after interview — he seems to have eventually realized it was better to save his powder and hope for a do-over some day.

RaceTracker Wiki: NY-Sen-B

36 thoughts on “NY-Sen-B: Ford Won’t Run; Wants to Spend More Time With His Helicopter”

  2. He didn’t explicitly say no to that, only that he wouldn’t run as a Democrat. Although I suppose his “I won’t hurt the Democrats” language indicates no.

  5. He should move back to Tennessee if he wants to be a politician again. Ford will never be able to accomplish anything in New York besides making himself unelectable in the future.

  6. was hoping for Gillibrand to get challenged. Now I don’t think Ford was the right guy and I would probably not have supported him. I really dislike Gillibrands connections with the tobacco lobby (I have lost many close family members to cancer) and while she has an anti tobacco voting record in my view she doesn’t provide a good enough reason for why she worked for the tobacco lobby. I like her personally but I just don’t know when it comes to her past work. I still think Paterson should have appointed someone else.

  11. Just to be a bit of a contrarian, I am not sure this is such good news for Gillibrand. Being an appointee of David Patterson she could have gained some legitimacy by winning a Dem primary. If GOP can get a serious canidate (like Pataki) to run she could be more vulnarable in the general.

  12. I was fine with the guy as long as he was posturing for statewide office in TN.  It’s a very conservative Southern state, he’s black, he had to posture as a DLCer to have any chance there.

    But this little stunt of even considering challenging an incumbent Democrat in New York just shows monumental stupidity by him.  Anyone in his shoes with good judgment would have laughed it off immediately upon those few rich people suggesting it.  He’s now permanently damaged himself, to no good end, self-serving or otherwise.

  14. because before this I think Ford could probably have been elected Governor of TN at some point in the future.  Not this year probably but a future year.  

  15. Harold has shown some maturity taking this position. How about we thank him for that by making him an Ambassador?

    I hear Antarctica’s lovely these days…

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