Dodd: Family is key reason for public service

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The impetus for Chris Dodd’s presidential bid was born two days after the worst terror attack on American soil.

It was his daughter, Grace, born Sept. 13, 2001.

“I asked myself ... what kind of a life, what kind of a country, what kind of a world is my little girl going to grow up in?” the Connecticut senator told a crowd of about 200 today in downtown Ames.

“As a result of that, I decided — not to run for the presidency that day — but to do whatever I could to make a difference.”

Dodd, a 26-year member of Congress, often says he was born into public service. He was 1 year old when his father, who later was elected to the U.S. Senate, was a lead prosecutor during the Nuremberg Nazi war crime tribunals.

Dodd reminded his audience at Lucullan’s Italian Grill that Iowans play a tremendously important role in selecting the next president, and that they should chose someone who has a history of working across party lines to pass legislation as he has done.

“I’ve reached out to someone on the other side of the political spectrum, and asked them to become a partner,” he said. “That’s how this works. You’ve got to have leadership in this country that doesn’t just demonize the other side.”

“I think Americans are tired of demonization in politics,” he said to roaring cheers from the crowd.

Ames resident Karen Bolluyt said she will caucus for Dodd because “I trust him to follow through on his commitments, and I see the evidence of bi-partisanism.”

Dodd again attacked frontrunners Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama for not returning to Washington, D.C., two weeks ago to fight a Senate intelligence bill. It would have given amnesty to telecommunications companies who cooperated with a secret National Security Agency surveillance program that was authorized by President George Bush after the 2001 terror attacks.

“I think we’d like to have a candidate out there talking about the Constitution with commitment and passion,” he said. “Too many people believe that (any Democrat) we nominate will automatically become the next president of the United States. That’s naive.”

Dodd’s stop in Ames began a five-city sweep through the state today. Thursday, he will be in Iowa City, Cedar Rapids and Des Moines.

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080102/NEWS/80102048/-1/NEWS04

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1. and Hillary

no, Obama