http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2011/03/02/dodd/index.htmlChris Dodd shows how Washington worksBy Glenn Greenwald
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Wikipedia
Over the last two years -- particularly during the debate over the financial reform bill -- Sen. Chris Dodd served on multiple occasions as chief spokesman for, and defender of, the interests of Wall Street and corporate America. That led to widespread speculation that the five-term Connecticut Senator, who announced that he would not seek re-election in 2010 in the wake of allegations of improper benefits from Countrywide Financial, was positioning himself for a lucrative post-Senate lobbying job -- i.e., peddling the influence and contacts he compiled over five decades in "public service."
Dodd responded to those suggestions by repeatedly and categorically insisting that he would not work as a lobbyist. In March of last year, he told The Hartford Courant that "he will not lobby, but, like Hagel and
Nunn, he may teach." In an August article headlined "Dodd forswears a lobbying career," The Connecticut Mirror quoted him as saying: "No lobbying, no lobbying." That vow earned this praise from Public Citizen's Craig Holman: "That's excellent on Senator Dodd's part."
Here's what Chris Dodd's word and integrity are worth, from The Hill yesterday:
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Dodd to be Hollywood's top man in Washington
Former Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) will be Hollywood’s leading man in Washington, taking the most prestigious job on K Street.
The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) named Dodd chairman and CEO on Tuesday. But heading Hollywood's lobbying arm could be problematic for the former senator, who accepted the kind of job he pledged not to take. . . .
Dodd's hiring, which had been rumored for weeks, ends months of media speculation regarding who would take one of the most glamorous jobs on K Street, whose perks include a $1.2 million-a-year salary and getting to attend the Academy Awards ceremony.
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Dodd is barred from formally working himself as a lobbyist for two years after leaving the Senate, but the core purpose of his new job is to oversee lobbying activities and to convert his influence and inside knowledge of Washington into favorable legislation and desired regulatory action (or inaction) for the MPAA. Dodd is replacing another long-time DC official paid to peddle his influence: Dan Glickman -- the former 9-term Democratic Congressman from Kansas and Clinton administration Agriculture Secretary. Leaving no doubt about what the MPAA seeks in this position -- a politician willing to sell his connections to the highest bidder -- the association chose Dodd only after it was unsuccessful in recruiting former Sen. Bob Kerrey.