Last week Jeff Ward, Chairman of TeamGOP said the following on his blog, "No one really believes Junior can win, not the DNC, DNSC or anyone else."Well, it looks as though Mr. Ward needs to do his research.
This is from Newsday on Sunday:
"Schumer has targeted a half-dozen vulnerable GOP incumbents who have shown weakness in recent polls: Mike DeWine of Ohio, Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, Jim Talent of Missouri, Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, Conrad Burns of Montana, and, to a lesser extent, Jon Kyl of Arizona. The committee also believes Rep. Harold Ford (D-Tenn.) has a good shot at winning the seat vacated by retiring Majority Leader Bill Frist."
That is not the only proof that the DSCC believes Congressman Ford can win this Senate race.
Below is a mailing the DSCC sent out just last week once again indictating they believe Congressman Ford has a real shot of winning this race:
Dear XXXXX XXXXXXX,
After seeing how successful he was demanding answers about pre-war intelligence last week on the Senate floor, don't you want to see Harry Reid setting the agenda for the United States Senate every single day?
Don't you want to stop Rick Santorum from voting on Supreme Court justices for another six years?
Don't you want to stop Katherine Harris from casting her first vote as a United States Senator to "stay the course" in Iraq?
On November 7, 2006 - exactly one year from today - we have a chance to say yes to all those questions. We can take back the Senate and make Harry Reid the new Majority Leader. We can defeat Rick Santorum in Pennsylvania and send Bob Casey to Washington. We can reelect Bill Nelson in Florida - and we won't need a recount to do it. What we will need, however, is your help.
The DSCC has set a goal to raise $365,000 by midnight tonight to jump-start our year-long campaign to elect a Democratic Senate. That's $1,000 we can spend every day to hold right-wing Republicans accountable for their actions and to deliver the Democratic message directly to the voters. We are almost at our goal. We only have about $100,000 to go. Your support could put us over the top. Please make a contribution today.
Click here to make a secure contribution of $50, $75, or more. If you give by midnight tonight, Sen. Ron Wyden will personally match your contribution dollar-for-dollar, effectively doubling your gift.
Sen. Wyden is committed to our efforts because he knows that taking back the Senate is the most important political cause you can contribute to right now. He knows that only a Democratic Senate will enact an agenda focused on building opportunity and providing security for every American.
The DSCC is the only organization that can make up for the millions of special interest dollars Republicans funnel to the campaign budgets of their top-tier candidates like Jon Kyl in Arizona or Conrad Burns in Montana. Democratic incumbents like Robert Byrd in West Virginia and Maria Cantwell in Washington can only compete toe-to-toe for every single vote with your help.
When you support the DSCC, you help us close the money gap so we can elect Democratic challengers like Claire McCaskill in Missouri and Harold Ford, Jr. in Tennessee. Together, we can elect a Democratic Senate that will change the corrupt and poisonous environment the Republicans have created in Washington. Please make a contribution by midnight tonight.
Click here to make a secure contribution of $50, $75, or more. If you give by midnight tonight, Sen. Ron Wyden will personally match your contribution dollar-for-dollar, effectively doubling your gift.
Remember, the DSCC is the only national party organization that gives more money and material support directly to the Democratic Senate campaigns most in need than any other political organization. We can make Harry Reid the new Majority Leader in 2006. We can beat Rick Santorum and Katherine Harris and put a stop to George Bush's right-wing agenda.
But we have a lot of work to do over the next year. Making a contribution today is a great way to get started.
Sincerely,
J.B. Poersch
Executive Director
This is not the first time Mr. Ward has tried to mislead people on his blog.
In a post last Monday, Ward tried to perpetuate the rumor that Harold Ford Jr. may drop out of the U.S. Senate race and pointed to the Memphis Flyer's Jackson Baker for proof.
Ward said, "My friend Jackson Baker as The Memphis Flyer has the pulse of the political landscape in Memphis and recently wrote, “Skepticism still endures as to whether Ford is in the Senate race for the long haul.” A week or so after he and I discussed this issue, Jackson shined the light of common sense on the Ford Campaign: “The surest evidence for that is the lack so far of big-name declarations for the 9th District congressional seat -- a Ford-family preserve since 1974.” Jackson took the words right out of my mouth."
The only thing wrong with those comments is that they are completely misleading.
In fact, Baker came on the TeamGOP blog to set the record straight.
Baker said the following in response to Ward's misleading post, "Hey, Jeff, thanks for the kind mention, but, in all fairness, the columns of mine which you cite, after acknowledging the existence of doubters, came down very strongly on the side of Junior's being in the race to stay. As I said, it's a no-lsituationaton for him. Either he gets elected, or he further enhances his national profile in losing and gets a high-class gig on the other end."
I must admit, that is the first time I have ever saw a columnist call a blogger out for misrepresenting what he wrote.
However, it is about time.
The moral of this story is simple: Do not trust TeamGOP.
More: Read what real political experts are saying about Harold Ford Jr. and his campaign here!
