WASHINGTON, Jan. 26 (UPI) -- Former U.S. Rep. Harold Ford Jr., D-Tenn., has been chosen to chair the Washington-based Democratic Leadership Council.
Because he does not currently hold elective office, Ford will be able to travel extensively helping the group develop policy positions, The Christian Science Monitor reported Friday.
Speaking at a Monitor breakfast, Ford emphasized the importance of building on recent successes.
"This new majority in the Congress ... gives the nation a chance to not only see a new leadership but to experience and embark on a new direction on a lot of policy fronts," he said. "This Congress has its work cut out for it."
Ford lost the Tennessee Senate race to Chattanooga Mayor Bob Corker last November.
In addition to the DLC position, he has accepted a teaching post at Vanderbilt University in Nashville.
