Dodd is Out but not Down

Over the last weeks since withdrawing from the presidential race, Chris Dodd has returned to life in Congress and East Haddam, Connecticut. Like his fellow Congressman Joe Biden, Dodd held a press conference during his first week back in Congress, mostly to discuss his new goals for the remainder of the legislative session. However, Dodd does have some remaining business to attend to. He recently sent out an email to his supporters and has been soliciting since for campaign donations, writing “We could not have waged the ideas based campaign and raised over $15M without you. Unfortunately, we do have a debt to retire and I am grateful for your support.” Once he has these financial follies out of the way, Dodd will be able to focus his full attention on furthering his Congressional agenda. He has decided to begin his re-entrance into congressional politics by filibustering AT&T and Verizon’s attempt to gain retroactive immunity for their involvement in the “warrantless wiretapping program.” Dodd also has other plans in mind. As the head of the Senate Banking Committee, he has planned to have “the government to set up a company backed by an initial $10 bil to $20 bil to buy distressed mortgages and provide lower-balance fixed mortgages to homeowners facing foreclosure.” Since he has presumably spent so much of his current attention fixed on Senate matters, he has not publicly endorsed a presidential candidate.

Dodd post caucus

Sen. Chris Dodd, after place about sixth place in Iowa, having less than 1 percent of the vote, has decided to drop out of the Presidential race. Dodd says that he does not regret his run, saying that he is proud of his attempt. Sen. Dodd has said that he will work hard for whomever his party will nominate, but says he will not seek the vice-presidency or cabinet positions. Sen Dodd had a homecoming celebration in his home town of East Haddam, Sen. Dodd's neighbors and supporters flocked to the restaurant to welcome him home and to celebrate and lament his presidential bid. Sen. Dodd failure has been attributed to the fact that in Iowa, he was an unknown candidate, seeing as the frontrunners, Clinton, Obama and Edwards took all the limelight. The international association of firefighters has issued a statement thanking Dodd for his support for the firefighters, and when on to announce that, since Dodd is dropping out of the race, they will wait until March to endorse another candidate. Sen. Dodd will be returning to the Senate, after having missed sessions being out on the campaign trail, also Dodd is moving foreword in Conn., already preparing for a sixth run for Senator. Sen. Dodd says that he will keep on fighting for America and has recently introduced legislation that would allow bankruptcy judges to change terms on foreclosure.

Dodd Discards Democratic Nominee Dreams

Chris Dodd, after a long and tireless battle for the presidency, has decided to withdraw from the fight for the Democratic presidential nomination. Even though Dodd had aired numerous new television ads and continued his campaign across Iowa at an intensified pace of “28 events in 26 cities over five days,” he still didn’t manage to secure the fourth place spot he was vying for. By garnering .04% of the votes of the 2,500 delegates present, Dodd did not qualify to move on to the debates. However, even though he has withdrawn, his name will still appear on the ballot for the Michigan presidential primary.
After the Iowa caucus, in a speech directed toward his supporters, he observed that “ we didn’t get the result we all were hoping for, but even so, this experience has been one of the most rewarding in my life of public service.” He went on to give his formal withdrawal, saying “I am withdrawing from the Presidential race. But let me assure you, we do not exit this race with our heads hanging- rather we do so with our heads held high.” In his speech, he then went on to thank his family, supporters, and the members of his campaign, the “Dodd Squad.” He then continued that he would support whoever wins the presidential nomination for the Democratic Party. Dodd plans to return with his family from where they have been stationed in Iowa back to his home in East Haddam, Connecticut on Saturday.

The hour is nigh!

With the Iowa caucuses less than 24 hours away, Dodd has neither surged nor trailed behind in the polls, but he is still in an almost dead heat for last place. A December 31st poll by the Des Moines Register showed Dodd at about 2%, but the accompanying article also notes that the senator has maintained fairly constant support, while his closes competition, Richardson and Biden, have slipped in the last week. In his sprint to the finish, Dodd launched a new television ad in Iowa, titled "Together". In the ad, he touts his years of experience and his record of reconciling differences between Democrats and Republicans. For now, Dodd is aiming to finish 4th and guaranteeing himself a spot in Saturday's debate in New Hampshire. However, a poor showing in the caucus could force Dodd to withdraw from the race.


http://blog.washingtonpost.com/channel-08/2007/12/new_ads_from_clinton_dodd_mcca.html
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2007/12/31/biden_contemplates_offers_to_c.html
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071231/NEWS09/71231044