FAST FACTS:
(Memphis 12/10/2009) They certainly put the pomp into this ceremony.
They had a choir, a violin, an honor guard, a couple of preachers, and a flock of Ford's. There were more Fords at the Shelby County Office Building then you'd find on the roads in Detroit. All of them waiting to explode with applause for the new Interim Mayor of Shelby County. A guy by the name of Joe Ford.
Yes, Joe Ford is part of the most famous, or infamous, depending on your opinion, political family in Memphis. And he's the last piece of the puzzle created early last summer when Willie Herenton resigned as Memphis Mayor. Then Shelby County Mayor A C Wharton was elected to replace Herenton, and Ford is now the interim Mayor until elections next year.
Interim County Mayor Joe Ford says he's humbled by all of this. It's not that he hasn't wanted to be the top political guy before, running unsuccessfully for Mayor of Memphis back in 1999. This time, he had to convince a majority of Shelby County Commissioners to name him as interim. They did, and he's it. "It's an honor," Mayor Ford said after taking the oath of office. "Though we face important issues over the next 8 months," he said, "I'm convinced that the best days are ahead of us."
Mayor Ford says he has no plans on making any big personnel changes. He has hired Pamela Marshall as his chief of staff. Marshall is a former television reporter, and currently works for the Memphis Chamber of Commerce. And the mayor says he wants current commissioner Matt Kuhn to be in charge of policy. Kuhn will be heading back and forth to Nashville over the next 8 months working on needs for Shelby County. He took the job because he respects Mayor Ford, he says. "When he was (commission) chairman," Kuhn said, "...he created task forces that got a lot of things done. He's already created task forces that are getting things done now, and there's a huge opportunity with The Med that he'll be instrumental in bringing people to the table to solve problems."
Kuhn will resign from his commission seat next week. Current Chairman Sidney Chism says he wouldn't be against naming a Republican to replace Kuhn. Kuhn is a Democrat, commissioners broke tradition in naming him to replace a Republican commissioner, David Lillard. "I'll be open to looking at a moderate Republican," Chism said, "But there's no way I'll support any conservative Republican candidate." The commission must also find a replacement for Ford, and one of the candidates is Ford's son Justin. "But if its not him," Chism said, "...we've got qualified candidates. About six or seven to be exact, who are applying for the position. We'll find somebody within that group."
Mayor Ford says he's ready to get going. "I'm ready to go," he said. "As soon as we get this reception over with, I'm going upstairs to the 8th floor. We're going to go to work.
Among the family members in attendance was former 9th District Congressman Harold Ford, Jr. Ford makes very few visits to Memphis since losing his race for U.S.Senate a few years ago. He is often seen on national media shows. But he refuses to talk to local reporters in town, and this event was no exception.
(Memphis 12/10/2009) They certainly put the pomp into this ceremony.
They had a choir, a violin, an honor guard, a couple of preachers, and a flock of Ford's. There were more Fords at the Shelby County Office Building then you'd find on the roads in Detroit. All of them waiting to explode with applause for the new Interim Mayor of Shelby County. A guy by the name of Joe Ford.
Yes, Joe Ford is part of the most famous, or infamous, depending on your opinion, political family in Memphis. And he's the last piece of the puzzle created early last summer when Willie Herenton resigned as Memphis Mayor. Then Shelby County Mayor A C Wharton was elected to replace Herenton, and Ford is now the interim Mayor until elections next year.
Interim County Mayor Joe Ford says he's humbled by all of this. It's not that he hasn't wanted to be the top political guy before, running unsuccessfully for Mayor of Memphis back in 1999. This time, he had to convince a majority of Shelby County Commissioners to name him as interim. They did, and he's it. "It's an honor," Mayor Ford said after taking the oath of office. "Though we face important issues over the next 8 months," he said, "I'm convinced that the best days are ahead of us."
Mayor Ford says he has no plans on making any big personnel changes. He has hired Pamela Marshall as his chief of staff. Marshall is a former television reporter, and currently works for the Memphis Chamber of Commerce. And the mayor says he wants current commissioner Matt Kuhn to be in charge of policy. Kuhn will be heading back and forth to Nashville over the next 8 months working on needs for Shelby County. He took the job because he respects Mayor Ford, he says. "When he was (commission) chairman," Kuhn said, "...he created task forces that got a lot of things done. He's already created task forces that are getting things done now, and there's a huge opportunity with The Med that he'll be instrumental in bringing people to the table to solve problems."
Kuhn will resign from his commission seat next week. Current Chairman Sidney Chism says he wouldn't be against naming a Republican to replace Kuhn. Kuhn is a Democrat, commissioners broke tradition in naming him to replace a Republican commissioner, David Lillard. "I'll be open to looking at a moderate Republican," Chism said, "But there's no way I'll support any conservative Republican candidate." The commission must also find a replacement for Ford, and one of the candidates is Ford's son Justin. "But if its not him," Chism said, "...we've got qualified candidates. About six or seven to be exact, who are applying for the position. We'll find somebody within that group."
Mayor Ford says he's ready to get going. "I'm ready to go," he said. "As soon as we get this reception over with, I'm going upstairs to the 8th floor. We're going to go to work.
Among the family members in attendance was former 9th District Congressman Harold Ford, Jr. Ford makes very few visits to Memphis since losing his race for U.S.Senate a few years ago. He is often seen on national media shows. But he refuses to talk to local reporters in town, and this event was no exception.
