Chris Dodd for President

Jason Rosenbaum of The Seminal has his weekly post up on MyDD about the Dodd campaign. Today he looks at how Senator Dodd is leading on economic issues through his position as Banking Committee Chair. He finds that in addition to leading on some of the most pressing issues about the health of our democracy -- restoring the Constitution, stopping retroactive immunity -- Dodd's leadership on banking issues is tremendously important.

Chris Dodd was one of only 25 Senators who were against the 2005 bankruptcy reform legislation which made it more difficult to file for bankruptcy and made it harder for working families to get out of debt in general. The bill was so bad, the Justice Department was forced to relax the new rules after Hurricane Katrina to avoid stranding thousands of disaster victims with unpayable debt and an inability to file for bankruptcy. Indeed, eRiposte at The Left Coaster concluded that Dodd has the best record out of the candidates on all recent bankruptcy reform bills, essentially voting progressive 100% of the time.

Dodd has also used his position to fight for progressive banking reform in other areas, offering progressive banking amendments, passing legislation to help people keep their homes, and introducing legislation that would reform the private student loan business and help more families afford college.

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Dodd's [bankruptcy] plan rolls back the regressive portions of the 2005 bankruptcy bill to make sure it fights for American families. Most important for me, his proposed reforms would allow citizens to discharge medical or educational debt when entering bankruptcy proceedings, making it harder for sudden illness or higher education to push families into financial ruin.

Thanks once again Jason for adding to the ever-growing case for Chris Dodd to be President.

Mark Winston Griffith of the Drum Major Institute Blog covers the Dodd bankruptcy plan with praise.

The bankruptcy bill of 2005 was probably one of the most egregious attacks on working class America in recent memory. It was also was one of the most embarrassing examples of how the credit card lobby carry's the US Congress in its own back pocket like a common piece of Visa plastic.

Democrat presidential candidate Christopher Dodd again distinguished himself last week by challenging that shameful moment in U.S. history. Reuters reported that Dodd planned " to introduce a bankruptcy reform bill that would give new relief to individuals overwhelmed by mortgage, medical and student loan debt."

Today's Des Moines Register has a story about Senator Dodd's bankruptcy reform plan. Fred Love of the Register reports:

[Dodd] blasted a bankruptcy reform bill passed in 2005, arguing that it benefits banks and credit card companies at the expense of citizens.

"The credit card industry and the major banks of the country wanted it," Dodd said. "And on the other side, we were aligned with every consumer group and every advocate group."

He said the 2005 bill keeps bankrupt Americans in debt with few alternatives to alleviate their financial problems.

"It was literally written to ensure that people would be trapped under financial burdens - either student loans or credit card debt," he said.

His bill would ensure that all medical debts and student loan debts are dischargeable, or can be erased upon filing for bankruptcy.

Dodd criticized some of his Democratic rivals for the party's presidential nomination for backing the current bankruptcy policy in the past. He said Sens. Joe Biden of Delaware, Hillary Clinton of New York and former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina all backed a form of the current bankruptcy policy during their time on Capitol Hill.

You can read Love's full write-up in the Des Moines Register.

Professor Elizabeth Warren writes about the Dodd bankruptcy plan at TPM Cafe's Warren Reports.

In a world with inadequate health insurance, job insecurity, predatory lenders, family break ups and plain old financial mistakes, bankruptcy can be a family's last chance to get back into the economic mainstream. But no one sees bankruptcy in their future, and those who have been through it want to forget, so there is no special interest group for the protection of bankruptcy laws.

Enter Chris Dodd. He released a major policy statement entirely about bankruptcy. He has good, strong suggestions that revolve around a single theme: Bankruptcy is a critical safety net for families that he promises to strengthen.

He's not a Johnny-Come-Lately to this issue. Over the decade of The Bankruptcy Wars (1995-2005), Senator Dodd consistently sided with the families against the banks. I recall the many, many press conferences the senator held to highlight how families--particularly families headed by women--would be hurt by the new laws. Now he's pushing the need for a safety net into the political conversation about the economic survival of the middle class.

Bankruptcy isn't a sexy issue, but I'm sure glad Senator Dodd is willing to speak up.

Professor Warren had previously said, "These proposals show that Senator Dodd is squarely on the side of families. He knows that hard-working, play-by-the-rules people sometimes need a safety net."

Space Cowboy of Shakesville, Libby of The Newshoggers, Steve Soto of The Left Coaster, Steve Benen, and Atrios have also written about the Dodd bankruptcy plan.

Today Senator Dodd released his full plan for bankruptcy reform. You can view the full Dodd plan for fair, practical bankruptcy reform at http://chrisdodd.com/issues/bankruptcy.

Here are the bullet points of what the Dodd plan will do:

• Modify the means test to ensure families have sufficient resources to live on
• Protect children, not creditors
• Ensure all medical debts are dischargeable
• Permit bankruptcy courts to restructure mortgages so families can stay in their homes
• Allow private student loans to be dischargeable

Harvard Professor Elizabeth Warren says, "These proposals show that Senator Dodd is squarely on the side of families. He knows that hard-working, play-by-the-rules people sometimes need a safety net."

Senator Dodd has the best record of Democratic candidates on bankruptcy reform - eRiposte of the Left Coaster writes, "He has been consistently and strongly progressive on the topic of Bankruptcy "reform" at least since 2000."

Last month Dodd announced that he will call for the reform of a part of the current bankruptcy law which prevents judges from aiding those in default of their loans by restructuring their payments.

Read the full Dodd plan http://chrisdodd.com/issues/bankruptcy and Tell a friend to do the same!

Update:
Here's Senator Dodd:

"I am proud to be the only candidate to have repeatedly voted against the so called bankruptcy 'reform' bills that were written by the special interests, for the protection of the special interests," said Dodd. "This was special interest legislation at its worst masquerading as reform at its most diluted. As President, I will work to make sure that our most vulnerable citizens are protected, but these five critical reforms can't wait until 2009, which is why I will introduce them as legislation in the Senate.

"I think my record on this issue speaks to caucus goers and voters who are looking for leaders that are genuine and that they can trust to do the right thing as President. You're not going to be able to repackage yourself as a fighter for the people when your record tells a very different story. Iowans are too discerning."