When you split close to 90% of the vote between 3 candidates there certainly isn't much left to go to the remaining 5 guys, but I agree strongly with BooMan23 that Chris Dodd should get, and in fact has earned, whatever support may be left, (and I would hope it is more than 15%). I don't agree with everything BooMan said in his diary today, particularly about it being a very clever and strategic way to vote against Hillary, but in any case he makes an excellent arguement why Dodd is deserving of your caucus vote with these words (emphasis mine):
It rewards good behavior, it shows that backbone pays off electorally, and it keeps someone in the race that is right on the issues and has the experience and press relations to be president... if given the chance. If Dodd finishes fourth he will not only fight on, but he will surpass expectations and get some new attention. If one of the big three drop out, Dodd could move up. He might even get enough publicity and connect with enough voters to get a shot at the vice-presidency.
And what was that good behavior we want to reward? Well, before the famous FISA stand Dodd recently took, let's rewind back to May, when he boldy came out- well ahead of both Hillary and Obama, on the first Iraq supplamental bill this year, and said NO! Out of Iraq NOW!
And it wasn't just in the middle of this campaign that Dodd has behaved well and shown good leadership and strong, committed support of Democratic principles, for Dodd has clearly shown that he can attract mainstream support, as evidenced by his endorsement by the IAFF (fire fighters union), and his superb record of union support, fostered over the years in heavily unionized and blue collar Connecticut. These are the bread and butter economic issues which John Edwards has rightly championed in this campaign, but I prefer to give credit to the guy who has been doing it a lot longer, and has the results to prove he can win these battles for us. And Dodd started his long journey on this road back in 1974, when he was first elected to congress, 2 years after Joe Biden's arrival in the Senate. But unlike Joe Biden, Chris has always stood on the right side of the economic issues, such as voting against the bankruptcy bills that protect consumers:
In 2000, Dodd was one of only 14 Senators to oppose the bankruptcy reform bill -- a bill that was deemed "a triumph for the credit card industry" and "a disaster for consumers who responsibly use the bankruptcy system." He opposed a similar bill in 2001, and voted against the final "reform" bill that was signed into law by President Bush in 2005. http://chrisdodd.com/...
and of course,
Chris Dodd authored the Family and Medical Leave Act and fought for seven years, overcoming two presidential vetoes, until it became law. Since passage, an estimated 50 million workers have been allowed to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to care for a new child or a sick family member.
And Dodd's foreign policy is very well grounded, growing in no small part from his father's roles as a Nuremberg prosecutor and later US Senator, and nurtured out of his own experiences as both a Peace Corps volunteer in Central America, an Army Reservist (the only Democrat this year who is a veteran), and as a Senator now seated on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee long enough to be the number 2 member, behind chairman Biden.
I see no downside to Chris Dodd being our nominee. He is smart, experienced, right on all the issues, and gosh darn it... I like him! he's electable!
Chris Dodd has earned my vote. Easily.