It was a long curious day for the Tennessee Democratic party yesterday. Divisions in the party were exacerbated when John Rodgers of the Nashville City Paper reported the words of Tennessee Democratic Party state executive committee member Fred Hobbs on Barack Obama:
“I don’t exactly approve of a lot of the things he stands for and I’m not sure we know enough about him,” Hobbs said when asked why he thought Davis wasn’t endorsing Obama. “He’s got some bad connections, and he may be terrorist connected for all I can tell. It sounds kind of like he may be.”
Adding insult to injury, Beecher Frasier, Chief of Staff to Democratic Congressman Lincoln Davis of Tennessee’s rural and conservative 4th District, was portrayed in the same article as saying he didn’t know for sure if Obama was “terrorist connected” but assumes he’s not.
The Tennessee Democratic Party almost immediately sent out a release rebuking Hobbs. Beecher Frasier, later in the day, released a statement setting the record straight asserting that “no one in their right mind, including me, believes Senator Obama has ties to terrorism.”
The state executive committeeman Fred Hobbs then, as reported by the Huffington Post, apologized for the comments and confirmed that he would be voting for Senator Obama in the fall.
However, at least one prominent Tennessee Democrat with a history with Beecher Frasier wishes to make clear his associations with the man. Late last night, NashvillePost.com received the following statement from Harold Ford, Jr.
Let me be clear about 2 things
Let me be clear about 2 things
First, Beecher Frasier is dead wrong. Senator Obama is a Christian, American patriot with a vision to make America safer and stronger. I am going to join millions of Tennesseans and Americans by working this year this to bring life to that vision by electing Barack Obama President of the United States.
Second, Beecher’s past association with me is just that - past. I’ve had no relationship with him since 2006. I don’t want a relationship with him, or anyone else who says these things. His comments offend me as an American and embarrass me as a Tennessean.
In 2006, Beecher Frasier took a leave of absence from the staff of Rep. Lincoln Davis to work for Harold Ford, Jr. as his campaign manager in his bid for U.S. Senate.
Rep. Lincoln Davis was very supportive of Harold Ford, Jr.’s run for Senate so these comments have to come with their own special sting for those close to both men.
1 comment:
If Tennessee had a brain it would be dangerous.
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