Democrats are happy that Attorney General Richard Blumenthal is
ready to leap into the U.S. Senate race now that embattled incumbent
Chris Dodd is giving up on reelection.
Blumenthal “will make an
outstanding U.S. senator,” said state Rep. Frank Nicastro, a Bristol
Democrat. “He will do the state of Connecticut proud.”
The
departure of Dodd from the race, which the senator plans to announce
formally at noon at his East Haddam home, clears the way for Blumenthal
to go after the seat he’s long sought.
City Councilor Kevin
Fuller, a Democrat, said that Blumenthal’s “background and love for the
state of Connecticut” will help him win “and bring respect back to the
position.”
“It
is time to make our Senate delegation positions of honor and respect,
which I feel has been lost in the last few years,” Fuller said.
He said that Dodd made the right choice given “all the controversy surrounding him.”
Nicastro said that Dodd obviously “realized it was time to make the decision and he made it.”
He
said that when he saw Dodd in Bristol on Monday, the senator “was not
the vibrant man I remember from years ago. He looked very, very, very
tired.”
Nicastro said that Blumenthal has the capacity to bring
the state together, to attract voters from across the political
spectrum.
“I believe you’re going to see everybody come together and get behind Dick Blumenthal,” Nicastro said.
Blumenthal
told the Associated Press he would announce his candidacy at Democratic
headquarters in Hartford right after Dodd addresses the press.
Source: Bristol
