HOW YOU CAN TELL HAROLD FORD IS A TRUE DEMOCRAT

I had questions about Harold Ford's true intentions in exploring a primary challenge to Kirsten Gillibrand here in New York -- I wondered if he was hoping to establish his name in a primary, then run as a Lieberman-style independent, presumably after ascertaining that the GOP would take a dive, as it did in Connecticut in 2006 -- but now I realize the error of my thinking. I realize that Harold Ford is a true Democrat. I realize that he's possibly the quintessential Democrat.

How do I know that? Because, in the New York Times op-ed he's written announcing his withdrawal from the race, he spends most of his time attacking fellow Democrats, while seeming to recall only at the last minute that he's supposed to regard Republicans as the bad guys:

WHEN it was reported two months ago that I was thinking seriously about running for the United States Senate from New York, Democratic Party insiders started their own campaign to bully me out of the race.

... The cruel twist, of course, is that the party bosses who tried to intimidate me so that I wouldn't even think about running against Senator Kirsten Gillibrand ... are the same people responsible for putting Democratic control of the Senate at risk.

... Our elected officials have spent too much time this past year supporting a national partisan political agenda -- and not enough time looking out for their own constituents.

...too few in the Democratic Party are really willing to break with orthodoxy to meet these challenges.

...the party has been too slow to change....

And ... oh yeah, almost forgot:

I refuse to do anything that would help Republicans win a Senate seat in New York, and give the Senate majority to the Republicans.

Translation: I'd hate it if those thuggish sleazebag idiots in the Democratic Party lost the Senate seat.

That's party loyalty, Democrat style.