Chris Dodd for President

Last week DailyKos commenter episty wrote, "If Chris Dodd doesn't stop acting like a leader....I just might have to vote to make him one."

I think this sentiment captures Chris Dodd's candidacy for President and the leadership he has displayed in the Senate along the way very well. On issue after issue, Dodd has stepped forward and defined the forward edge of the Democratic field.

On Iraq, he has repeatedly called for ending America's involvement in Iraq's civil war by setting a date certain for withdrawal and enforcing that by tying it to funding. As another Democrat candidate has recently turned to saying, "No timeline. No funding. No excuses." That is the Dodd plan for ending the Iraq war in a nutshell. And not only does it exist on the small screen of America's TVs and the pixels of our computers, it's the only piece of legislation in the Senate that will succeed in ending the war in Iraq.

This isn't a recently arrived-at position for Chris Dodd. He lead the Democratic field during the supplemental funding debate in May -- declaring long before any vote was cast that he would not vote for legislation that failed to include a firm, enforceable date to end the war. Senators Clinton and Obama never said how they would vote and waited until the 18th minute of the 15 minute vote to cast their ballot in the right place.

This time around, Dodd stated that he would not vote for "any measure that does not have a firm and enforceable deadline to complete the redeployment of combat troops from Iraq" weeks before a vote would come. He called on his opponents to state clearly and directly if they would vote for Iraq legislation that did not include a firm timetable tied to funding. While none have directly answered the question, Senators Clinton and Obama seem to be making moves to follow Dodd's lead and do the right thing. They would not be there were it not for Chris Dodd's leadership and the pressure from grassroots Democrats around the country -- who've sent thousands of letters to their Senators -- to get them to support legislation that actually will end the Iraq war.

But Dodd isn't just leading on Iraq.

On energy policy, Dodd is the only candidate to call for a Corporate Carbon Tax. Any plan that lacks this bold move fails to pass the smell test -- because polluters will only stop polluting when it's made too costly for them to pollute.

Dodd is the only candidate who has pledged to restore the Constitution in his first hour in office. He's not waiting until January, 2009 to effect change, though. He's doing it now. The Restoring the Constitution Act will reverse the terrible Military Commissions Act -- not just restore habeas corpus, but ban torture and ensure that America honor our commitments to the Geneva Conventions.

And much, much more. Education. National Service. Health care. Protecting America's middle class. Transforming America's relationship with Cuba.

Quite simply, Chris Dodd has defined what it means to be a leader in America today. In the Senate he has used his office to push for the real, substantive change that these times demand. On the campaign trail he has pushed for the most bold plans for the future course of American policy. No other candidate has offered the breadth of leadership on issues that Americans deeply care about and are demanding leadership on.

Now is the time to take the support for Chris Dodd's leadership on these issues and turn it into votes for Chris Dodd to lead America as our next President. All apologies to you, episty, but Chris Dodd is not going to stop leading, so you'll just have to vote to make him President.

My rough, partial transcript:

I've been often asked, what's the first thing you do on January, 20th as President of the United States. The first thing I would do, if this situation doesn't change, is by executive order is restore habeas corpus, restore our Constitution of this country. There's nothing more important than that. I walk around with it every day of my life. For 26 years I've carried the Constitution in my pocket given to me by Robert C. Byrd, my colleague in the Senate, a quarter of a century ago. I carry it with me Saturday, Sunday, every day of the week to remind myself how important this document is, the values and the principles that are incorporated in it. And terrorism can tear down our buildings, but if they tear down our constitution they will have hurt us far beyond what anyone can imagine. And when the leadership of this country suggests to you that you have a choice to make: somehow diminish the Constitution or be more secure, that's a false choice. We can be more secure and protect our Constitution.

I just got back from the ACLU Day of Action to Restore Law and Justice Rally in Washington DC. Senator Dodd gave an impassioned speech on restoring the Constitution and reversing the Military Commissions Act.

Today Senator Dodd will speaking at a rally in support of restoring habeas corpus, reversing the Military Commissions Act, and restoring the Constitution. It's being brought together under a coalition of organizations, including the ACLU, Amnesty International, Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, and the National Religious Campaign Against Torture. It looks like there will be a crowd of over 3,000 people outside the Capitol this afternoon. Senator Dodd has been a strong supporter of restoring the Constitution since the onerous day that the Military Commissions Act was passed last fall. Dodd understands that the roll-back of rights and protections under the Bush administration has made us less secure. Senator Dodd's Restoring the Constitution Act would reverse the MCA, restore habeas, and ensure that America does not allow torture. Learn more at http://restore-habeas.org and join the more than 12,000 people who have become citizen co-sponsors of the the Restoring the Constitution Act. Senator Dodd will be speaking at the rally at 12:45. I'll be going and will report back later this afternoon. Christy Hardin Smith of FireDogLake has a run-down of current efforts to restore the Constitution. She's whipping her readers to get their representatives on the right side of the issue today: "Please take some time to call your elected representatives and tell them that you want to see the full restoration of habeas corpus. And that actions speak much louder than words — so you would like action on this now." Bob Geiger has more. Jeralyn Merritt of TalkLeft has two great posts up on efforts to close the prisons at Guantanamo Bay. First she draws attention to Senator Harkin's bill to close Gitmo -- Senator Dodd was the first co-sponsor to this legislation. Merritt writes, "For every day that the U.S. continues to hold detainees at Guantanamo without charges, the U.S. loses credibility with the world and violates our long-established and cherished standards of due process and adherence to the rule of law." Merritt also evaluates differing arguments for the procedure set up by the MCA to handle military commissions; it's a great piece that makes clear why these commissions are antithetical to America's spirit and history of moral leadership in the world.

Senator Dodd delivered the commencement address at Cardozo Law School in New York earlier today. The speech was titled "Restoring Our Constitution: Away From Vengeance, Toward the Rule of Law." Here is an excerpt of the speech, as prepared. The full text of the remarks can be read here.

Restoring our standing in the world starts with restoring our moral authority – it starts with restoring our Constitution. That is why I have introduced legislation establishing military commissions that will allow us to vigorously bring terrorists to justice while upholding our nation’s historic legal principles. History has shown us that even in the face of unprecedented horror, the two goals are not mutually exclusive. To the contrary, they are wholly dependent on one another. By insisting that suspected terrorists will be treated consistent with norms of our national law and the Geneva Conventions, to which we remain a signatory, I believe we can make the military commission process protect national security while upholding the international credibility so critical to securing America. If last century’s most heinous criminals could receive due process, there’s no reason in the world this century’s most heinous criminals should be denied it. That is why, this summer, I intend to make a major push to bring the Restoring the Constitution Act to a vote in the United States Senate and restore habeas corpus rights once and for all. It’s time we once again draw upon America’s historic principles and ideals to secure the country that created them.