It appears Ed Bryant is confused again about Congressman Ford's record. Thus, it is time to once again to set the record straight.
Rhetoric: In the Kingsport Times-News, Ed Bryant claimed Harold Ford Jr is calling for a public timetable to withdraw American troops from Iraq.
"Bryant took issue with Ford's recent call during a Kingsport stop for a gradual troop withdrawal from Iraq…Reasonable people could disagree with this, but clearly to make a public timetable (to withdraw from Iraq) ... in essence ... is a sign of weakness. It's a sign that the terrorists are winning if we're going to set down a timetable to withdraw. ... It gives them our whole strategy."
Kingsport Times-News 01/21/06
Reality: Congressman Ford has never called for a making a public timetable to withdraw American troops from Iraq. He has stated on several occasions that American troops cannot leave Iraq and Afghanistan until those countries can adequately govern and defend themselves.
"We cannot leave Iraq and Afghanistan until they have adequate systems in place to govern and defend themselves. There is conflicting rhetoric coming out of the administration on this front. One day we hear that a pullout or drawdown of U.S. troops is imminent. The next we hear the opposite. I want the troops home as much as anyone, but having to send another generation to that region to fight 10 or more years from now because we left too early would be a worse outcome than the situation we now face. We need to do this right the first time."
Washington Post Op-Ed by Harold Ford Jr, 01/21/06
Reality: Ford knows a timetable might heighten the Iraqi insurgency: "Critics of such an exit strategy, including U.S. Rep. Harold Ford Jr., have said a withdrawal date or timetable might heighten the insurgency against the U.S. presence in Iraq."
Commercial Appeal, 09/03/05
Reality: Ford knows that setting a timetable would let the insurgency wait us out: "Ford also said he was against setting any timetable for pulling troops out of Iraq because that would let any group working against the effort to rebuild a democratic government know all they have to do is “wait us out to beat us.”
Rogersville Review, 07/20/05
Reality: Ford knows the dangers of setting a timetable for Iraq. On Hardball with Chris Matthews, Ford said he is not asking for a definite date, but instead would like to see some new approaches by the Bush Administration:
MATTHEWS: Let me go to Harold Ford, back to Congressman Ford again. And the question that always gets asked when you push any kind of timetable or any kind of headline congressional resolution that we`re calling on the president at least to begin to talk about a timetable, the enemy, in this case, the insurgents in Iraq, read on their local newspaper, in their local newspaper, U.S. Congress calls for deadline for U.S. involvement in Iraq. Don`t they have a big party at that point and say, we`ve won?
FORD: Sure, they do. But I don`t think we`re asking for some definitive date here. I think what`s being asked for is the fact that we have to try some new approaches there. Since 9/11, Congress and the American people have given the president the benefit of the doubt in just about everything he wanted to do in Iraq. We find ourselves now, with elections having passed, and frankly more car bombings, more violence, and, in a lot of ways, less stability.
Furthermore, the way that the Iraqi people really measure our progress on the ground is by the restoration of basic services, from electricity to water to sewer systems. And we still have a long, long way to go there. The only point I make -- and some others in Congress may have a different point.
But the only point I make is, lay out for us, Mr. President, what the strategy is and what the road map is to achieve these things. I`m not asking for a March `06 date or an October `06 date, as some are asking for. But give us a sense of how we can accelerate the training of the police and military forces that General Petraeus is leading there in Iraq. Give us a sense of how likely it is that Sunnis and Shiites can get along to write a constitution that contemplates questions this day and 50 years from today. And, equally important, how is it that we can provide whatever resources may need, within reason, to help the Iraqis restore their basic services and resume a life with the basic necessities that any American and for that matter any other citizen would want for their children?
That`s the benchmark. And, frankly, those are the goals that we need to lay out. And I hope the president will see fit to do that.
MSNBC Hardball, 06/16/05
(Congressman Ford also stated that setting a timetable to withdrawal troops in Iraq could potentially hurt our troops and that we cannot leave until the Iraqis can defend themselves on MSNBC's Live with Alex Witt on November 20th.)
I hope this clears up Mr. Bryant's confusion about Congressman Ford's record.
Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but no one is entitled to their own facts.
More: Mike Kopp has some good commentary about this story on his new blog, the Tennessee Political Pulse.
Blogging for Bryant Now Lying: It now appears that Ed Bryant has called in his attack dogs at Blogging for Bryant to peddle his lies for him.
Jay Bush writes, "Ford indeed penned an op-ed in yesterday's Washington Post, in which he writes: "We cannot leave Iraq and Afghanistan until they have adequate systems in place to govern and defend themselves."
I'm glad Ford has changed his mind on the need for a dangerous public timetable for troop withdrawal, but his ever-changing positions on the war in Iraq leave me wondering to what lengths FORD will go to grab a headline.
Unofficial Ford blogger, Chris Jackson explains: It appears Ed Bryant is confused again about Congressman Ford's record.
Actually Chris, we're ALL confused about Congressman Ford's record...."
On the contrary Jay. The record clearly shows Congressman Ford is against a public timetable and always has been. The quotes in this post, both from 2005 and 2006, clearly show that.
His stance has been unwavering.
Congressman Ford has been a true leader on finding real solutions to the situation in Iraq. He has asked the tough questions that needed to be asked and put forth new and innovative ideas that can produce success in Iraq.
Demonstrated by both his voting record and the fact that he has now visited Iraq four times, Harold Ford Jr. is a strong leader on national defense and no amount of lies can change the truth.
It is only people like yourself, Jay, who seek to mislead the public by lying about Congressman Ford's record, that are supposedly 'confused' by this matter.
However, should I expect anything else from you or your cohorts?
You and your candidate have a long and distinguished record of lying and playing dirty politics.
However, I hate to tell you, it is not going to work in this campaign.
The people of Tennessee are ready for a change from this kind of slash and burn politics and pure dishonesty.
That is why Harold Ford Jr. will be elected our next U.S. Senator in November.
