Chris Dodd for President

Why is it Senator Dodd that you acted gutless when you cut and ran from Imus. Imus is only good enough when you are getting exposure? I have voted for you in the past. That will never happen again.

i have a disabled son and although he tried regular college he could not keep up. The federal government allowed me to apply for FAFSA aid for that. I have found a program in Elmhurst Il at Elmhurst College and I am sure many colleges have programs like this but it is not federally funded. It is not federally funded because it is a certificate program not a degree seeking program. It is a life skills academy type program and it also offers academic classes. We need these types of program to allow financial aid for parents. This program costs $25000 a year and what family with a disabled child has this kind of money laying around? Please comment on any aid you see in the future for these types of programs.

Howard Dean has threatened the state of Florida with political interdict if the Republican-led legislature moves the primary earlier than the date he's approved. Among other things, he's threatened to pull funding from any candidate who campaigns in the state. What is your response, as someone who is potentially affcted, to this threat?

Why is there no movement toward a national bottle bill?

Everyone is talking about climate change and saving energy and no one in Congress is talking about a national bottle bill.

I remember when all bottles were returned. When the law was changed and bottles were discarded, the difference in garbage was immediate.

Decades later we lament pollution, landfills, energy costs and there is no movement toward restoring a national bottle bill.

1) Which past Presidents do you admire & why?

2) What do you want your legacy to be?

3) What factors will go into your Vice Presidential Selection? What past VP nominees would you have selected yourself?

Thank you.

Brad Handlin
very strong supporter
Fargo, North Dakota
Moving to Strongsville, Ohio (Cleveland area) later in the year

What steps would you take as President to limit the effect of lobbyists and large campaign contributions in our democratic process. And as a corollary, how would you address the spiraling costs of running for government positions, particularly the Presidency?

Hello Senator,
The Long Island Sound, our "Grand Canyon" in Connecticut, does not need a commercial, industrial, structure built right in the middle of it. I hope you agree and will use your power as Senator, or our next President to prevent it.
Thanks,
Gary

1. Do you support sin/consumption taxes and reduction/elimination of income taxes? If not, why not? Sin/consumption taxes would tax those who detract from society through the consumption of alcohol, tobacco, fossil fuels and the conspicuously ostentatious consumption of luxury items. Those who have such extra disposable income to consume these items, which cost us all in lost productivity thanks to the extensive health problems associated with their consumption, should shoulder the burden they impose on those of us who choose not to consume. Luxury homes and vehicles use considerably more resources than more modest and reasonable counterparts, so should contribute back to society to equalize their overconsumption. Income taxes, capital gains and inheritance taxes penalize everyone equally, even those who can ill afford it. Sin/consumption taxes would only burden those who choose to indulge while unburdening those struggling to survive and support loved ones and benefit their communities.

2. Will you pander to special interests that currently control the direction of all legislative, executive and judicial functions of the People's government? Will you act against the best interests of American citizens to maintain the profitability of fossil fuel interests, tobacco companies, automobile manufacturers, road builders, telecommunication monopolies, government subsidized railways, paper manufacturers, chemical companies, pharmaceutical companies? How will you demonstrate to Americans that you are not a puppet of special interests?

3. Will you eradicate the dark veil of secrecy under which our government presently operates and illuminate through transparency ALL the machinations that are undertaken by your administration on behalf of all Americans?

4. Will you end the senseless and exorbitantly expensive War of Drugs and other victimless crimes which fill our prisons beyond capacity and clog our justice system into ineffectiveness?

5. Will you encourage free trade and markets through the abolition of all monopolies and tariffs?

6. Will you promote innovation, improvement and privatization of government subsidized industries by ending subsidization of substandard practices in areas like education, farming and public/private transportation/railways?

7. Do you espouse the doctrine that all human beings are created equal and deserving of all the freedoms and rights accorded to Americans? Will you include the rights of women, people of color and non-indigenous inhabitants within our borders?

8. Do you support all of the Constitution and its amendments in their entirety? If not, which ones do you not support and why don't you support them?

9. Do you support the federal government's involvement in local/intrastate issues? Why? How will you demonstrate your adherence to this stance?

10. Do you support investment of American tax money in America's infrastructure to improve the lives of every American and improve our competitiveness in the world? How and what do you propose spending tax dollars on? Please elaborate and itemize the federal budget and how you envision each tax dollar should be allocated.

I'm afraid my sound card is not working properly. Will responses be written or only discussed verbally from your videostream?

USURY & INTEREST

Since 1641 and the Massachusetts Body of Liberties, we have had strong laws prohibiting usurious interest on all loans. The reasons are manys. On a practical level, it removes funds from equity investments, thus enabling corporate intrigue as the lender and owners have opposing interest; as is case today, with the maximum established it diminishes the buying power of the middle class, and as we are witnessing creates the level of discontent and despair that fuels crime, terror, and other destructive activities.
Most importantly, as it evidences an avarice by the rich, and promotes a criminality by the judges, police, lawyers and debt collecters, it destroys the foundations of a society who recognize that high interest is nothing more than the enslavement of the middle class to an controlling oligarchy.
Will Senator Dodd support the extension of the 7% rate (or 1% above the Fed Rate) under the existing National Bank Act to all national banks and credit cards in all states?

Is Chris Dodd the only candidate in support of this?

Why did Chris Dodd go to Syria with John Kerry?

What is driving him to run? He's old, and been in the Senate a long time. Where is he coming from?

Last night on the second day since Senator McCain's announcement about his "war hawk" candidacy for the presidency he attempted to make a joke about IED's on a talk show. These explosive devices have already killed too many of our soldiers in Iraq. Do you believe Senator MCcain should appologize for his insensitive comments to our men and women in the armed forces as well as to the parents, children, spouses and family members of soldiers who have lost their lives as well as to the soldiers who have been blinded, crippled, paralyzed or permanently wounded by such devices in Iraq?

What do you plan to do about Iraq, now. Remember you are not president. What should be done is to show the war has no rationale. If you do not Bush will hurt the party and country by throwing around meaningless words like victory and surrender. I suggested the following for an ad for the DNC. It is something for you to follow up on. Why aren't you? Otherwise the war will drag on for the next two years. Do you really want to shorten it? This is the only way. Meanwhile Bush is winning.

RM

Why should we leave Iraq? Because there is no reason to stay except to kill more US soldiers and Iraqis. Iraq varies from a civil war to chaos. There are factions within factions. Iraqis are more interested in killing each other than in living together in peace, than in their country.
Why should our soldiers die to protect Iraqis so they can slaughter each other? Bush says our aim is victory. What is victory when we are in the midst of another people's civil war? He does not know, he cannot answer. He says we should finish the mission. What is the mission: to get the Iraqis to love each other? In that case instead of sending another 30,000 troops he should send in 30,000 psychiatrists. Bush's aim is clear: to postpone the inevitable so the next president will be blamed for his catastrophe --- no matter how many American lives, no matter how many Iraqi lives, it takes. Shall we spend hundreds of millions of dollars and so many, many lives, shall we cause so much suffering, so George Bush can evade his responsibility for the immense damage he has done? Force George Bush to explain, in meaningful words, not slogans, what we are doing there, which he cannot do. Then let us tell George Bush --- forcefully --- that people's lives are more important than his ego, and let us start to withdraw from Iraq, now.

Many people on the coast are unfamiliar with Sen. Dodd. I had worked on the lasr senatorial reelection campaign, and had known both Senator Tom as well as Senator Chris' records. Would the Senator spell out the differences in his approach to that of Senator Clinton as Chief Executive Officer?

J. R. Ellis president emeritus GMP LU39-B

Last evening I viewed the Democractic candidates first debates,
but actually no one debated. It was delivered on the media that there would be questions and answers given with some presence of debating the questions. There was never enough time to devote to this process to properly view and understand a candidates real understanding of issues and deliverance of core ideas that held to "truth, principles and morals" of those candidates. Once the candidates are in a forum, such as this, the Host should have had much more time to listen after asking pertinent questions, and the viewing, listening audience, from my point of view, did not get to hear "real hard answers" to real hard problems. It is time for this type of three ring circus to have imposed on it some realistic processes, no hype by the TV networks; but a real forum of say teams on hard core issues that are presently effecting the lives of the Poor, Children, Elderly a growing populations, men and women in the armed forces; we need to hear more on how to stop Banking fraud and schemes; and high interest that keeps creeping into American's pockets to keep us overtly upside down in interest. And
real phasing out of Nuclear arms, in the USA, Russia, and China and India, and Pakistan. WE need Codes of Ethics in government and our judiciary as they set the standards in society if they lie and cheat what then for the rest? And, Our privacy rights, our lives have been turned upside down - by this President and his Administration. I am still not satisfied nor convinced that this President and VP and Pentagon didn't know about terror about to strike on New York and elsewhere on 911 in advance, How do you respond in fact and truth to that? And could you have stopped those flights? Could you have stopped the intrusion of terror by closing borders long over due, so that illegals and terrorist can not storm in as they are still doing?
Prior, we knew al queda was trying to blow up as many as 10 jets coming from the Pacific region, we stopped that; and we knew long before their intentions and act was carried out, so where was our Commanders and Air Force during 911? And why didn't they shoot down those jets before they crashed into the Towers? America does want answers, to how Bin Ladens men carried out destroying two buildings,and why did those same two building crashed down like they had explosives already set in concordance to those jets flying into them? Where is the truth and hard core answers in government? What we need is "truth, priniciples and morals" in our next President and leadership. How will you face our society if in fact you Senator Dodd, did not take action when you understood that terrorists were coming and you did nothing to stop them? Futures for your children - leadership means virtues, morals and faith building, say NO if you mean no to abortion. God mandates that and those millions of lives snuffed out are in direct violation of His Commandments, not mine and not yours. It is the right of our Leadership to bring about change in how we care for and direct and love our children - stop the media and hollywood from extorting our children's lives they destroy the goodness in our children, - put the stop in place to keep our children safe from death, moral decay, morbidity, killing on TV and movie screens and bring back sound thinking principles, and joy to children so that they can grow up to be the normal, moral, healthy, good citizens that will lead our country and ones we can be proud of. It does take a village to make sure we are healthy, and only a few to destroy us. Are you a Bilderberger? Do you partake in there philosophy of a global world and corporate and finance control over ALL nations?
Why are those meetings so secretive? What has this to do with the USA and the G-7 ? Are we going to be a One governement ruled by the EU? And do you want a World tribunal that controls criminals and tries our men and women in courts in their courts? Would you attack Iran if she continues to attack our men and women in Iraq through insurgency?
Would you keep sending $10Billion dollars annually to Russia for the next ten years to keep her from proliferating nukes? Or would you
stop the deceit and stop the lies to the AMerican people on how money is used to bribe Russia so they will play along; even though they are behind the conitinued munitions and missile proliferation now?

I appareciate your running and wish you well for serving this great country. God Bless.

If we are to keep our great country intact and healthy, there are several extremely difficult reversals that need to take place. For that to happen, we need real experienced leadership. The people and businesses making money from activities that damage the soul of the country must be given something else to do with their creative talents. No one will be able to simply cut them off—it’s too late for that. Here are a few examples:
1. We must eliminate private military forces within the country (e.g. Blackwater). Has anyone read history? It would be far less costly, and produce a healthier and more productive U.S. military force to require a two year mandatory (no exceptions) term of service for college-bound students. Since all economic classes would be represented, the chance of engaging in Iraq-like money-making/resource grabs would be greatly reduced.
2. There is no reason for the United States citizenry to pay as much on national defense (now offense) as the combined rest of the world. The reason this is going on, again, is to support a huge and unaccounted for weapons industry that foments violence, material destruction, and death in most regions of the planet. Through our tax dollars, we are supporting mass grief. For anyone who has built a house and seen one torn down, you know how much easier it is to destroy what has been created through hard work. If you don’t believe that, step on a fine Swiss-made mechanical watch, then try to build one. For anyone who has raised a child only to see them cut down in their prime for a money-making cause understands more than any of us about pain rendered by abuse of power.
3. The K-12 education system in this country is breeding a new generation of people that will find it harder to compete in a global marketplace where standards are higher. We must teach science in school and teachers must be trained in the topics they are given to teach. To make the fundamentalists happy, create a comparative religion course that’s mandatory too. God knows, we need to understand each other. Most importantly, because we pay our teachers so little, the quality of teaching is also less than is should be. We are completely dependent on people willing to dedicate their lives, despite salaries that can barely sustain a household. There are not enough people like that. Teachers should be as highly valued as doctors, lawyers, and scientists—they are teaching our children.
4. There are now gambling operations in every state and most counties in America. Gambling is an addictive activity that takes money from the lower economic classes (because they do not understand the risks) and transfers it to corporate interests with little civic or social responsibility. The use of Indian tribes to legalize gambling is a farce and a further insult to native Americans. Let’s pay them for their pain and suffering through an ongoing support scheme and eliminate gambling except in Nevada and Atlantic City.
5. The US should be a leader in reducing and removing CO2 and other greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. If we don’t act now, future generations—including our children—will suffer immensely. There are technologies and carbon-credit markets that could be implemented and mandated now. Will the next president be willing to stand up to the largest corporations on Earth and require a portion of their profits be taxed to undo the damage done by the Exxon’s and GM’s of the world?
6. Generally increasing stress in life (to stay afloat with two parents working, to know that people are suffering and dying in many countries because of our country's actions), increasingly horrific images on television and in the movies, seedy and obviously greedy fundamentalist televangelists who add nothing real or enriching (but adorn themselves with gold watches, expensive cars, private planes, and luxurious homes—not exactly Christ-like), and news as entertainment are all toxic elements that are hurting the entire society. For those who can't take it, we're seeing more of the Virginia Tech and Columbine incidents, but for the general population, it's just a new level of stress.
7. Who will make America the country it can be: we don't attack, we respond; when forced to fight, we are not war mongers; we do good whenever we can and stand on the side of the weak and helpless, not the entities most likely to profit from violence; we educate our people so they cannot be easily duped; and we are not an empire, but a nation living in and respecting a global community.
8. The list goes on.
Part of the problem is that our government leaders are, for the most part, lawyers. Few of them have any operating or entrepreneurial experience. We need someone as creative as Steve Jobs, as smart at Richard Feynman, and as operationally talented at Lou Gerstner. Electing anyone from the current bunch—unless they can demonstrate how they will attract and retain real talent—will have limited results. Ask any CEO if they believe their corporate counsel would make a good chief executive. The United States government is the largest organization on earth. It’s called the “Executive Branch” because it requires an executive to run it.

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