Senator Chris Dodd Resigns

Name: Senator Chris Dodd (D-Connecticut)

• 1974-1980, elected to the House of Representatives
• 1980-2010, one of the longest serving Senators in Connecticut's history and the 9th most senior of current Senators and one of the three from the 1980 freshman class still serving.
• 1995-1997, General Chairman of the Democratic National Committee
• Currently appointed as Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee - one of the most powerful positions within the Senate
• 2006, ran for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States, but eventually withdrew after running behind several other competitors
• 2010, announced he would not run for re-election in the 2010 mid-term elections.

I find the announcing of his retirement very interesting.  I mean Dodd is a very liberal Democrat, and it seems that all that liberal Democrats want is power and more power.  He's been in the Senate for over three decades and holds one of the most powerful positions within the Senate and even made a run for President of the United States in 2008 and suddenly from his own words, "to step aside so that someone else can step up." It doesn't make sense besides that fact that there was no way he was going to be re-elected anyway with sagging poll numbers over the past year. I believe that he knows this and decided to resign with dignity rather than lose with shame. But maybe it was something else?

In a news piece by the Associated Press, "Embattled Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd was all but forced to quit, and North Dakota Sen. Byron Dorgan also ditched his re-election effort in the face of a difficult race. Dodd's announcement Wednesday may actually save the Democrats' hold on his seat — the party quickly recruited a stronger candidate — but Dorgan's retirement may cost the party a seat in his Republican-leaning state. And that would mean the loss of a critical 60th vote in the Senate."

I think the powers that be (a.k.a. the Annointed One (i.e. Barack Obama)) asked him to resign. Obama knows there is no way that if Senator Dodd ran for re-election he would, which would then lose a seat in Senate to a Republican, which then would be unable to stop a Republican fillisbuster, which would then prevent Obama from moving forward with his radical agenda he has for this country. By asking him to resign gives the opportunity for a young, strong, untainted Democrat to take his place and still hold that "critical 60th vote in the Senate."

After over thirty years, suddenly he's just going to give up all that power that took him so long to gain? What golden parachute, if any, did he receive by doing so? What did he get? Or should we just give him the benefit of the doubt. I'm sure as the days and months progress something will be learned on the true reason and deal that he made to resign without a fight. I just hope that this alleged plan backfires and a Republican or Conservative sweeps the upcoming race and wins the vote. Definitely something to keep an eye on.