More info. I removed the tank strainer. The problem is complicated by the fact that this is a TD and not a sedan. The TD fuel tank has two chambers, the main chamber and a lower second thin chamber maybe 1/2" deep. The outlet draws from the lower chamber and fuel moves from the main chamber into the lower chamber via the tank strainer. Of course, the nasty ****, having a specific gravity greater than diesel moved into the lower tank and mixing fresh diesel or water or whatever with the fluid in this lower second chamber is not as straightforward as it would be in a single chamber tank. I assume the tank is designed this way because it is mounted flat and this two chamber system retains fluid in the outlet portion of the tank when the tank is low and you go around a corner.
Thanks to Chad300tdt who has a little diagram on the forum explaining this oddity in the TD tank.
300TD tank strainer