A 2008 Interactive Timeline - Gameplay Thread

[Yelnoc]

July 2, 2007

"Website helps candidates manage social networking"

The Federal Computer Week covers the use of social networking sites by presidential candidates.  Chris Dodd's use of MyLifeBrand to keep his supporters in sync received top marks from the editors.

July 6, 2007

"Singer Paul Simon Joins White House Hopeful Dodd on Iowa Campaign Trail"

Fox News covers Grammy Award winning singer/song writer Paul Simon's appearance with Chris Dodd in Iowa.  This marks the beginning of a five day "River to River" tour which Dodd will undertake in a large blue bus with his last name imprinted on the side.

[Yelnoc]

July 10, 2007

"Dodd's Iowa Tour Finale a Success"

Senator Chris Dodd ended his five day "River to River" tour with a major rally in Sioux City, one of Iowa's largest urban centers located at the junction of the Missouri River and Big Sioux.  His speech, which was well received by the moderately large crowd, touched on a number of subjects.  The ongoing Surge in Iraq received especially scathing criticism; Dodd called for an immediate withdrawal of troops from the war torn country.

[Yelnoc]

July 15, 2007

Murphy for Dodd

Freshman Congressman Chris Murphy of Connecticut appeared with Senator and Presidential hopeful Cris Dodd at the Plymouth Senior Center in New Hampshire.  Murphy traded endorsements with his former mentor Dodd, whom he worked for as an intern in the mid-1990's.  As insignificant as this may seem to Dodd, this is his first political endorsement of this fiscal year's fourth quarter.  This does appear to be contributing to a general upswing of momentum from the senator, who hopes to surpass Hillary Clinton as the Democratic primary leader.

[Yelnoc]

July 28, 2007

Dodd Barnstorms Iowa

Over the past two days, Chris Dodd has met with voters across seven different towns in the Buckeye State.  For a list of the places Dodd visited and an inside look at his campaign calendar, see here.

[Yelnoc]

August 4, 2007

Ned Lamont Endorses Senator Dodd

Ned Lamont endorsed Chris Dodd at a fundraiser in Hartford yesterday afternoon.  The popular former senate candidate was well received by the crowd of political donors.  Dodd has been heavily outspent by the Clinton campaign; whether Dodd can build a motivated grassroots networked to dethrone the dynasties remains to be seen.

[Yelnoc]

August 5, 2007

Dodd slams News Corporation-Wall Street Journal Merger

Conservative magnate Rupert Murdoch's acquisition of Wall Street Journal, finalized about a week and a half ago, has had strong reverberations in the political world.  Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd was particularly appalled by the Murdoch's expanding monopoly.  

"I am deeply troubled by the incredible amount of consolidation occurring across the American media landscape," said Dodd through a statement issued by his campaign a few days ago.  A campaign spokeswoman commented that "he is a believer in free speech" when asked about the statement.

August 11, 2007

Dodd Criss-cross New Hampshire

Today Chris Dodd wrapped up a four-day tour of the Granite State.  The trip started off well on Wednesday afternoon in Manchester with a forum on higher education; by evening Dodd was in Concord.  On Thursday, he visited three towns, stopping in Bartlett to give a speech to the NEAH-NH.  Over the next two days, Dodd made appearances in Manchester, Nashua, Peterborough, Exeter, New Market, and Portsmouth.  Overall, Dodd visited ten towns in four days.

[Yelnoc]

August 18, 2007

A Busy Week in Iowa

Senator Dodd returned to Iowa with a vigor.  Monday was spent in Des Moines.  Tuesday, Dodd held a series of three town halls in Adel, Boone, and Fort Dodge.  Wednesday, Dodd held another town hall, this one in Webster City, after which he proceeded to Waterloo for the Iowa Federation of Labor AFL-CIO Convention and then rounded out the day with an appearance in Tama.  On Thursday, Dodd appeared briefly in Marshalltown and then moved on to Des Moines for a speech on education policy.  Yesterday, Dodd appeared in Newton, Muscatine, and Eldridge.  Today, he visited Clinton and Cedar Rapids. 

Tomorrow, Dodd will shake hands with voters in Urbandale, Indianola, and Des Moines.  Then on Monday, he will participate in "Fire House chat" with STAR PAC on foreign policy.  The meeting is being held in Des Moines at the Old Firehouse #4.

[Yelnoc]

August 25, 2007

It's the Economy, Stupid

Senator Dodd's return to New Hampshire was heralded by a favorable spike in polling.  Hillary Clinton's solid lead has slipped as more and more voters in the Granite state met the candidates and found they preferred Dodd.  The Connecticut senator tested this support on Thursday when he delivered a speech on a topic no candidate so far had broached.

Monday, Dodd met with Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson in Washington D.C to discuss recent fluctuations in the market, as a part of Dodd's duties as a senator.  Dodd came away with a conviction that America's recent economic prosperity was built on shaky foundations and that if certain changes did not happen soon, it could all come crashing down.

In Burlington, Dodd railed against the deregulation of certain sectors of the financial system, calling for the repeal of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and the stiffening of the net capital rule.  These critical misteps by past administrations had allowed a "shadow banking system" to gain considerable power, placing the entire US economy at risk. 

[Yelnoc]

August 30, 2007

Firefighters for Dodd

Yesterday the International Association of Fire Fighters endorsed Chris Dodd for President.  Senator Dodd has a long history of supporting labor issues.  As the days go by, it is looking more and more like organized labor is solidifying behind Dodd's campaign.

To celebrate their endorsement, firestations in Iowa City, Des Moines, and Council bluffs will be hosting rallies for Dodd at which the Connecticut senator will speak.

[Yelnoc]

September 2, 2007

Dodd stops in Nevada

Yesterday, Chris Dodd appeared at rallies in Las Vegas in Reno.  These rallies were part of his endorsement by the IFF on Wednesday; all were held at local firestations.

September 3, 2007

Labor Day in New Hampshire

Senator Dodd kicked off the festivities with a speech in Manchester at the Saint George Greek Orthodox Church where the AFL-CIO Labor Day breakfast was held.  Dodd arrived in Milford at noon, just in time to take part in the annual Milford Labor Day Parade.  The day was ended at the Amherst Country Club where the Connecticut senator enjoyed some excellent barbecue with local democrats.

September 5, 2007

Dodd is back in Iowa

Dodd made his inauspicious return to the Hawkeye state Tuesday, attending a meeting in Waterloo and a fundraiser in Manchester.

Dodd has always loved a good barbecue.  In addition to today's, he attended cookouts in Somersworth and New London.  While chewing on a tender pork rib, Chris joked "Elect me if you want to see the White House return to the good ol' days of Bar-bee-que!"

[Yelnoc]

September 12, 2007

Dodd Slams the Surge

On the sixth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, Chris Dodd made a point to disparage the recent US Surge strategy in Iraq.  During a testimony of General David Petraeus, Dodd said "In the eight months since President Bush’s announced the surge, we have spent tens of billions of dollars, over 700 American service men and women have sacrificed their lives, and nearly 4,400 have been wounded—all to provide breathing space for the Iraqi Government to engage in political reconciliation. And what has the Iraqi Government done with this breathing space?"  He raises a good point.  As thing stand, Iraq does not look like it is doing any better with more US troops in its borders.  Maybe now is the time for strategic withdrawal.

September 14, 2007

Dodd to raise $4 million

Chris Dodd's campaign released a statement asking their supporters to help meet their quarterly goal of $4 million.  Fundraising as been the achilles heel of the Dodd campaign.  Hillary Clinton, the leader of the polls up until now, has had millions of dollars at her disposal per quarter.  Dodd has closed the gap with tireless campaigning at a personal level but in the modern age, one televised ad is worth more than afternoons meeting the voters.  With the recent endorsement of fellow Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman, Dodd hopes to close the gap this quarter. 

In two weeks, major fundraising events will be held in Connecticut, just a few days before the quarter closes.  If you want to donate to Dodd's campaign, just go to his website and click "Donate Now."