Live in NY? Thinking of Harold Ford?

Let us decide (0.00 / 0)

Even FiveThirtyEight has gotten into the bash Harold Ford movement.

I'm a New Yorker, and I want Harold Ford to run. I don't know if I'd vote for him or not, but I think it would be good for New York to have him and Gillibrand have a spirited campaign fight, and good for the winner. I know this is anecdotal, but the comments on the FiveThirtyEight posts from New Yorkers mostly ran the same way. Let us decide!

The video above is mostly looks to me like they edited together a bunch of clips to make him look bad, along with a few real stances.

So I checked On the Issues from his 2006 campaign. This is when he was running for Senator of Tennessee; as Senator from New York he'd naturally be more liberal. After all, constituents do affect the stances of their members of Congress, and there's nothing wrong with that.

The bottom line total from On the Issues has him as a "moderate liberal." I'll cherry-pick a few particulars, to balance the cherry-picked video above:

Rated 78% by CURE, indicating pro-rehabilitation crime votes. (Dec 2000)

Rated 91% by the NEA, indicating pro-public education votes. (Dec 2003)

Rated 90% by the LCV, indicating pro-environment votes. (Dec 2003)

Rated 33% by the Christian Coalition: an anti-family voting record. (Dec 2003)

Rated F by the NRA, indicating a pro-gun control voting record. (Dec 2003)

Rated 86% by APHA, indicating a pro-public health record. (Dec 2003)

Rated 89% by SANE, indicating a pro-peace voting record. (Dec 2003)

Rated 0% by FAIR, indicating a voting record loosening immigration. (Dec 2003)

Rated 86% by the AFL-CIO, indicating a pro-union voting record. (Dec 2003)

Rated 88% by the ARA, indicating a pro-senior voting record. (Dec 2003)

Voted NO on making the Bush tax cuts permanent. (Apr 2002)

Voted NO on Tax cut package of $958 B over 10 years. (May 2001)

Rated 23% by NTU, indicating a "Big Spender" on tax votes. (Dec 2003)

Yes; he's a Blue Dog. And that's no smear; while in Congress he was a member of the Blue Dog coalition.

Yes; he's somewhat centrist. Those ratings above would be near 100 or 0 for many Democrats.

But I want to see him campaign, and I want to see Gillibrand campaign, and then I want to decide.

As for carpetbaggers--Clinton and RFK? We don't mind importing our Senators if they're good ones.

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by: SarahLawrence Scott @ Fri Jan 15, 2010 at 22:17:09 PM UTC