Atheists say Harold Ford, Jr. ignoring them

The group American Atheists says it won't endorse Harold Ford, Jr. is his campaign for U.S. Senate. Ellen Johnson heads the 2,300 member group based in Cranford, New Jersey. She says Ford's use of a church as a setting for a political TV ad ignores the US Constitutional assertion that there should be no religious test for office. In the ad, Democratic candidate Ford stands in a church and says, "Here, I learned the difference between right and wrong." Johnson says Ford is ignoring atheists in his campaign and her group won't back his run. Ford campaign senior adviser Michael Powell says the group's opposition makes the campaign even more certain Ford's candidacy is resonating with "people of faith." Vanderbilt University political science professor Bruce Oppenheimer says opposition by voices outside the mainstream can boost a candidacy. As Oppenheimer puts it, "Sometimes your friends turn into your enemies, and your enemies become your friends." Ford is running against Republican Bob Corker for the seat being vacated by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist.