It looks like Congressman Ford is going to be staying pretty busy. While already accepting a visiting professorship at Vandy and the head job at the DLC, Ford now has now joined Wall Street by signing onto the Merrill Lynch team.
The Commercial Appeal has more:
Former Congressman Harold Ford Jr. of Memphis, recently named chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council, will become a vice chairman and senior policy advisor at Merrill Lynch and Co. Inc., the New York investment banking firm announced this afternoon.
Ford, 36, lost his bid to be a U.S. Senator from Tennessee in November and was named to the centrist Democratic think tank last month. He will also be teaching at Vanderbilt University in Nashville while he awaits what he says will be another run for public office.
"We are delighted to have a dynamic, energetic visionary like Harold Ford join Merrill Lynch," Stan O'Neal, the company's chairman and chief executive officer, said in a prepared statement.
"At a young age, Harold has excelled in virtually every assignment he has ever taken on, distinguishing himself in the Congress and bringing fresh ideas and solutions to government that transcended partisan politics. We have every expectation that Harold will be equally successful supporting Merrill Lynch in its efforts to pursue new business opportunities and be responsive to the communities we serve around the world."
Ford could not be reached yesterday when the first rumors of the new job prospect reached The Commercial Appeal. His closest advisors declined to confirm reports that he was going to a Wall Street investment banking firm.
"I'm thrilled to be joining the executive team at Merrill Lynch," Ford said in the company's statement. "For generations, the Merrill Lynch brand has represented the path to economic opportunity for millions of Americans and citizens the world over. It's a great tradition that I look forward to helping build on during my tenure with the firm."
Statement from Merrill Lynch:
Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (NYSE: MER) today announced that Harold E. Ford, Jr., former congressman, Ninth District of Tennessee, will join the company as vice chairman and senior policy advisor, effective March 5. Mr. Ford will advise senior management on domestic policy issues, serve as a member of the firm's public policy and social responsibility management committee, and support a variety of business development initiatives in the institutional and retail markets. He will report to Greg Fleming, president of the firm's Global Markets and Investment Banking group, and maintain offices in New York and Nashville.
Mr. Ford was elected to Congress in 1996 at age 26 and served five terms. He sat on the House Budget Committee and the House Committee on Financial Services. In addition, Mr. Ford co-chaired the Congressional Savings and Ownership Caucus, a bipartisan coalition dedicated to advancing policies to build savings and assets for all Americans, and low-income Americans in particular, and the Community Solutions and Initiatives Caucus, a bipartisan group of lawmakers that seeks to help faith and community-based groups solve social challenges. Earlier this year, he was elected chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council, the progressive policy and issues advocacy organization, succeeding Iowa Governor Thomas Vilsack, who resigned to take steps in advance of a run for the presidency.
"We are delighted to have a dynamic, energetic visionary like Harold Ford join Merrill Lynch," said Stan O'Neal, the company's chairman and chief executive officer. "At a young age, Harold has excelled in virtually every assignment he has ever taken on, distinguishing himself in the Congress and bringing fresh ideas and solutions to government that transcended partisan politics. We have every expectation that Harold will be equally successful supporting Merrill Lynch in its efforts to pursue new business opportunities and be responsive to the communities we serve around the world."
"Harold's experience, enthusiasm and perspective make him a valuable addition to our management team," said Mr. Fleming. "We look forward to his contributions to Merrill Lynch's business development efforts and expect to benefit greatly from his government experience and personal insight as we address the public policy implications of our various business activities over the next few years."
"I'm thrilled to be joining the executive team at Merrill Lynch," said Mr. Ford. "For generations, the Merrill Lynch brand has represented the path to economic opportunity for millions of Americans and citizens the world over. It's a great tradition that I look forward to helping build on during my tenure with the firm."
Mr. Ford earned a law degree from the University of Michigan Law School and a bachelor's degree in American history from the University of Pennsylvania.
Merrill Lynch is one of the world's leading wealth management, capital markets and advisory companies with offices in 38 countries and territories and total client assets of approximately $1.6 trillion. As an investment bank, it is a leading global trader and underwriter of securities and derivatives across a broad range of asset classes and serves as a strategic advisor to corporations, governments, institutions and individuals worldwide. Merrill Lynch owns approximately half of BlackRock, one of the world's largest publicly traded investment management companies, with more than $1 trillion in assets under management. For more information on Merrill Lynch, please visit www.ml.com.
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