Harold Ford, Jr.: smirking sociopath

[Douglas Carpenter]

Last edited Tue Jul 10, 2012, 11:02 AM - Edit history (1)

Harold Ford Jr., sleazy corporatist and nepotist, offers up a particularly grotesque defense of U.S. aggression

By Glenn Greenwald


Harold Ford Jr. (Credit: Reuters/Jessica Rinaldi)

Harold Ford, Jr. is the walking, breathing embodiment of virtually everything rotted and corrupt about the American political class. He entered Congress at the age of 26 only by virtue of nepotistic benefits: while in law school, he ran for the seat long held by his father of the same name (he then promptly failed the test for admission to the Tennessee bar). In Congress, he voted for de-regulation of Wall Street (which helped precipitate the 2008 financial crisis); to authorize the Iraq War (and then harshly criticized Democrats who opposed it and refused to admit its error even as late as 2007); in favor of a Constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriages (The Advocate branded him “anti-gay”); and was one of the few Democrats to support the credit-card-industry-demanded bankruptcy “reform” bill that made it harder for impoverished consumers to discharge consumer debt.

After Tennessee voters drove him from Congress by rejecting his 2006 Senate bid, Ford immediately cashed in on his servitude to Wall Street and peddled his D.C. influence by becoming Vice Chairman and Senior Policy Adviser of Merrill Lynch. During Ford’s tenure, “Merrill Lynch nearly collapsed, was bailed out by US taxpayers, and went through a troubled merger with Bank of America,” yet he nonetheless received $2 million a year in guaranteed salary plus what were almost certainly substantial annual bonuses. He left what had become Bank of America Merrill to become a Senior Managing Director at Morgan Stanley, at which time he bought a $3 million co-op in Manhattan. Upon leaving Congress, Ford also cashed in by becoming the last Chairman of the corporatist Democratic Leadership Council (“last” because, typifying his career, the DLC ceased to exist under his leadership). He cashed in further by becoming a Fox News contributor, until he left for MSNBC.

Reflecting the interests he typically serves so eagerly, Ford recently attacked Democratic criticisms of Mitt Romney’s career at Bain Capital on the ground that “private equity is a good thing in many, many instances.” So that’s Harold Ford, Jr.: opportunistic, craven, sleazy nepotistic corporatist who has made a career out of converting his unearned political influence and loyalty to the banking industry into large wads of cash

snip:

You just have to watch the reaction of Ford, neocon Dan Senor, and Mike Barnacle to appreciate the soulless rot that leads people so cavalierly to defend and dismiss the continuous killing of innocent Muslims by the U.S. But it’s Ford’s smirking, self-satisfied, effete ignorance — from a warmonger whose delicately manicured hands have never been and will never be near any of the carnage he reflexively defends — that is particularly nauseating. Like most mindless defenders of U.S. violence, Ford just repeatedly utters the word “Terrorist” over and over like a hypnotic mantra.

http://www.salon.com/2012/07/09/harold_ford_jr_smirking_sociopath/

[WI_DEM]

1. He's a loser.

[Laurian]

2. Yes, he is. He got his and that's all he cares about.

I wonder if he ever had any concern for the "common folks" or if his public service was just a way to further his own interests.

[Douglas Carpenter]

10. born with a sense of entitlement and little if any empathy or values

[immoderate]

3. He's the template for shit.

--imm

[pscot]

4. Despicable.

[uponit7771]

5. I was just thinking to myself Harold Ford represents a LOT of what's gone wrong with DNC

[winstars]

6. This POS is lying every day on Joey Scar's show, its sickening...

check out the blog below, its from a link contained in Glenn Greenwald's story above. The blogger and other commentators there have been NOT LIKING them some HF Jr for years. Learned a lot more info on HF Jr reading old posts going back to 2007. What an asshole!!!

http://skepticalbrotha.wordpress.com/2006/11/16/harold-ford-jr-on-election-day-chats-up-the-good-old-boys-in-front-of-rebel-flag/

[progressoid]

7. Now now now. We shouldn't talk badly about our own party members.

Even if he is working against us.

Party unity and all that.

[Douglas Carpenter]

9. I actually did hesitate for about 30 seconds before posting it

[backscatter712]

8. I got a post hidden in the other thread about this story...

I posted what I really think about him.

My description was inspired by the above picture of him in front of the Confederate flag.

Nope, still not sorry for saying it.

[Taverner]

11. Sociopath - exactly.

IF you ever listen to him, he out neo-cons Bush and Cheney

[Douglas Carpenter]

12. lacking sympathy, empathy or remorse