« Previous Entry | Main | Next Entry »

Posted: November 16, 2007 4:02 PM
Dodd Calls for Party Unity on Presidential Nominee
Email This

Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., called on his Democratic rivals to support the party’s nominee, regardless of who it is. The move came after it was reported in The New York Times that former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., would not commit to support Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., if she won the Democratic presidential nomination.

In a statement, Dodd said, “I am surprised at just how angry John has become. This is not the same John Edwards I once knew. Of course, we should all come together to support the nominee. I wonder which of the Republicans John prefers to Hillary?”

Edwards responded at a campaign stop in Lebanon, N.H., saying, “I fully expect to support the Democratic nominee, and I fully expect to be the Democratic nominee.” When asked again what he would do if Clinton wins the nomination, Edwards refused further comment.

Over the weekend, Dodd and Edwards joined four other Democratic presidential candidates at the Iowa Democratic Party Jefferson Jackson Dinner in Des Moines. Dodd used the forum to play up two of his campaign’s key issues — ending the Iraq war and restoring the Constitution.

On the war, Dodd criticized other candidates for saying they would not commit to redeploying forces from Iraq by the end of their first term in office. “Any Democrat who can’t stand up here and promise we’ll get our troops home before 2013 — I wonder what they’re standing for,” Dodd remarked.

Dodd also pledged to restore the Constitution after years of neglect under the Bush administration. “I’m going to swear to do two things — to protect and defend the Constitution, and to keep our country safe,” Dodd said. “The Bush administration has failed on both accounts. No more Abu Ghraibs. No more Guantanamo Bays. No more torture. No more attorney generals who believe the president is above the law.”

Dodd is scheduled for a slew of campaign events in Iowa over the weekend, including stops in Waterloo on Friday, Marshalltown on Saturday and a forum in Des Moines on Sunday.