Dodd brings campaign to Ottumwa

By MATT MILNER Courier staff writer

May 04, 2007 09:54 pm

— OTTUMWA — It’s hard to have a relatively low profile after more than two decades in the U.S. Senate, but Christopher Dodd has done it.
Dodd, D-Conn., brought his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination to Ottumwa for a Friday morning meeting with supporters. Dodd is not as immediately recognizable as some of his rivals, but said the Iowa caucuses are famous for giving every candidate a chance.
“I’m very grateful for places like Iowa to give a fellow like me a chance,” he said. “I don’t think you like being told by the national media who your candidates are. I’m not as well known as some of the other candidates, but I’ve got the opportunity to get well known over the coming months.”
Dodd spent much of his time at Riverside Restaurant talking about engagement as a foreign policy. He said strong nations and confident leaders don’t need to resort to threats. They are secure enough to talk with nations who oppose them and use dialogue to secure peace.
He used two Republican examples to make his point. Ronald Reagan called the Soviet Union an “evil empire,” but also reached out diplomatically. And Richard Nixon opened ties to China despite his long-standing reputation as a staunch anti-Communist.
Dodd said he supports negotiations with Iran and North Korea over the two countries’ nuclear programs. He also wants to re-engage Europe. The continent’s emerging generations do not have the cultural memory of World War II, the Marshall program and the postwar years, Dodd said.
Like most Democratic candidates, Dodd favors withdrawal from Iraq.
“I’m of the view that we’ve done enough in Iraq,” he said. “It’s not the United States against an enemy over there. It’s the United States in the middle of a civil war.”
Dodd backed efforts to secure the U.S. border with Mexico against illegal immigrants, but said that is not the whole solution. The government must penalize employers who hire people who are in the country illegally.
Dodd dismissed the idea of a guest worker program, but said mass deportations are not possible.
“We’re not going to round up 12 million people. It’s not going to happen as a practical matter,” he said.
Instead, Dodd favors offering those who are in the country already an avenue toward legal status. If people accept that path, they can stay. But they must leave if they do not.
Dodd also backed universal health care and said the United States must insist on open markets if companies are going to locate jobs overseas.
Matt Milner can be reached at (641) 683-5359 or via e-mail at mwmilner@mchsi.com

Breakout box

See a short biography of Sen. Dodd and get a link to his campaign in the caucus section at www.ottumwa.com

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