Democrats Must Find New Candidate for Dodd's Seat—Now

Don't wait for fallout from Vietnam lie; I'll be fatal
By Caroline Miller,  Newser Staff
Posted May 18, 2010 11:26 AM CDT
Democrats Must Find New Candidate for Dodd's Seat—Now
In this Jan. 6, 2010, photo, Connecticut AG Richard Blumenthal announces his candidacy for the US Senate seat vacated by the retirement of fellow Democrat Christopher Dodd in Hartford, Conn.   (AP Photo/Jessica Hill, File)

Richard Blumenthal, until yesterday the frontrunner for Chris Dodd's Connecticut Senate seat, is toast, and the sooner Democrats recognize it the better, Nate Silver writes. You may be able to cheat on your wife and get away with it, he argues at FiveThirtyEight, but you can't cheat on your Vietnam War record—or lack of same—and expect voters to trust you. Especially if you're attorney general, "a position which is supposed to connote trustworthiness, precision, and law-abidance."

Dems needn't wait for the polling to assess the fallout, Silver suggests, but go for one of Connecticut's five Democratic members of the US House—Rosa DeLauro and Chris Murphy have both been touted as senatorial material in the past. Or divert Ned Lamont, or Stamford mayor Dan Malloy, from the governor's race. (More Connecticut stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X