Chris Dodd - Talking Time

Over on Chris Dodd’s website, there is a nice feature for tracking how much time each candidate has spent speaking.

As of now, Clinton has spent the most time speaking at 12:33 with Obama a close second at 12:10. Edwards and Richardson each are at about 8:30.

Chris Dodd On the Air

In a new ad airing in New Hampshire, Chris Dodd says Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton changed positions on the Iraq war to follow Chris Dodd and support the Feingold-Reid-Dodd amendment.   Dodd also says he’ll be talking in New Hampshire about his plan to fix global warming.  On his website, Dodd has posted his comprehensive 14-point plan for energy independence, with one point proposing a Corporate Carbon Tax.  The revenues obtained from the tax, estimated at over $50 billion annually, would fund the research and development of renewable technologies (e.g. wind, solar, ethanol) and help bring energy-efficient technologies into the market.  Other points include raising fuel economy standards in cars to 50 mpg and promoting mass transit.  The full ad is below.

Christopher Dodd’s Experience

In a recent New York Times article by Mark Leibovich about Chris Dodd’s campaign, there is an interesting tidbit illustrating his vast experience.  Leibovich points out Dodd’s “Senate colleagues Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama, and his former colleague John Edwards, have a combined tenure in the chamber barely half Mr. Dodd’s years.”

Dodd was first elected to the House of Representatives in 1974 when Barack Obama was a 13-year-old teenager in Honolulu.  John Edwards was graduating from North Carolina State University with a degree in textile technology, and Hillary Clinton had just graduated from Yale Law School.

Joe Biden can boast of similar experience to Dodd, having been elected to the Senate in 1972 and staying in the seat since.  One other candidate for the Democratic nomination was also serving in the Senate in ‘72, Mike Gravel.  However, Gravel was challenged for the Democratic nomination in 1980 and lost his seat.  Since then, he hasn’t been in Congress.