Nomination Scrabble: Chris Dodd

Note: This is the second in my series assesssing the prospects of various Democrat and Republican candidates for securing their party's nomination.

Connecticut's senior Senator, Democrat Christopher Dodd, likes to joke that he is the only presidential candidate who receives mail from both the AARP and diaper services. He's right that he's the only candidate in this position. At the age of 62, Dodd is a very proud father of a toddler and an infant. The way that he has talked about becoming a parent is one of the reasons that I like him so much.

Dodd served in the Peace Corp in the 1960s and after two years in the Dominican Republic he served in the Army National Guard. Those are his Vietnam War credentials and they measure up nicely with other Democrats in the pool. Dodd was first elected to Congress in 1974 and he advanced to the Senate in 1980. He's been there ever since, which makes him a Washington insider. But the other Democrats in the mix are also Washington insiders, albeit being "inside" for a shorter period.

In Congress Dodd has long been active on foreign affairs, healthcare for the poor, and job opportunities programs. He' a man with an admirable and impressive track record on children's issues, ranging from healthcare to childhood nutrition, to daycare, and pushing for Head Start expansion. His record is pure gold in this area and far surpasses any of the other Democrats in the mix, including Clinton. He's long been fiscally responsible, a desirable match-up with any of the GOP candidates who might claim this mantle (do Republicans care about a balanced budget anymore?).

I like Chris Dodd. I respect Chris Dodd. Dodd is solid and experienced and his judgment is sound. I think that he is a terrific leader and I would be thrilled to cast a presidential ballot for him in November 2008. But it ain't gonna happen. For starters, members of Congress, who often vote strategically to accomplish complicated political goals, have a notoriously difficult time explaining this to the average Joe and Josephine Voter, and Dodd's been in Congress for more than 30 years. This will be a challenge, and no one wants to be labeled as a waffler. Second, he's going to have a hard time raising money in the juggernaut that is presidential campaign financing in a terrifically front-loaded primary. He can't match the star power of either Obama or Hilary and it will hurt him. He doesn't have their name recognition, either, and so crowd power won't make up for lack of zillions of dollars. He's articulate and thoughtful in his rhetoric but he doesn't ooze charisma and is nothing close to a media darling like Obama. Connecticut, Dodd's home state, doesn't confer any significant political advantages. He's a well-respected Democrat from the most Democratic part of the nation. Big deal.

What Chris Dodd has is vice presidential credentials. He would mesh well with current front-runners Obama or Clinton. They are colleagues in the Senate now and by all accounts have respect for one another. He wouldn't bring a strategic advantage to a Clinton-Dodd ticket, since their states are next-door neighbors. But in 1992 another candidate named Clinton chose the senator from the state-next-door for his ticket and that worked out just fine. He would bring regional balance to an Obama-Dodd ticket, and some significant experience that Obama lacks. I think that an option on Blair House is Dodd's best prospect for 2008. And I take some consolation that we seem to be living in an era when vice presidential influence is on the rise. That makes Dodd an eminently desirable candidate.