{"id":74269,"date":"2008-11-04T16:13:50","date_gmt":"2008-11-04T21:13:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/2008\/11\/04\/religion-and-politics-08-christopher-dodd\/"},"modified":"2024-04-14T04:13:49","modified_gmt":"2024-04-14T09:13:49","slug":"religion-and-politics-08-christopher-dodd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2008\/11\/04\/religion-and-politics-08-christopher-dodd\/","title":{"rendered":"Religion and Politics \u201908: Christopher Dodd"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"dodd(1)\"<\/figure>\n\n
<\/div>\n\n

Background<\/h2>\n\n
\n

Hometown<\/strong>\nEast Haddam, Conn.<\/p>\n

Age<\/strong>\n65<\/p>\n

Religion<\/strong>\nCatholic<\/p>\n

Education<\/strong>\nUniversity of Louisville School of Law, J.D., 1972\nProvidence College, B.A., 1966<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

Candidate Website<\/strong>\nwww.chrisdodd.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Candidacy Status<\/strong>\nFormally withdrew candidacy Jan. 3, 2008\nFormally declared candidacy Jan. 11, 2007\nEndorsed Barack Obama Feb. 26, 2008<\/p>\n

Political Experience<\/strong>\nU.S. Senator from Connecticut, 1981-present\nU.S. Representative from Connecticut, 1975-1981<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

Professional Experience<\/strong>\nU.S. Army, 1969-1975\nAttorney, New London, Conn., 1972-1974\nPeace Corps Volunteer, Dominican Republic, 1966-1968<\/p>\n

Family Information<\/strong>\nSpouse: Jackie Clegg\nChildren: Grace Dodd, Christina Dodd<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

<\/div>\n\n

Religious Biography<\/h2>\n\n
\n

In His Own Words<\/strong><\/p>\n

“My faith informs me … It guides my decisions and taught me to promote the common good, social justice and to do everything possible to provide a safety net for the most vulnerable.”\n(Speech, April 2007<\/a>)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

Dodd was raised in the Catholic faith. Because of his father’s election to the Senate, he split his boyhood between Connecticut and Washington, D.C. Dodd attended\u00a0Georgetown Preparatory School<\/a>, a Jesuit high school outside Washington. He then went on to study English literature in Providence, R.I., at\u00a0Providence College<\/a>, which describes itself as a “liberal arts, Catholic institution of higher education.”<\/p>\n\n

After graduating from college, Dodd joined the Peace Corps in 1966. He says that his faith “had a lot to do with” his decision to join the Peace Corps and serve two years in the Dominican Republic; he said that he was motivated by “the idea of giving back.” Dodd hassaid<\/a>\u00a0that faith and the Catholic social tradition of the “common good” also informed his subsequent decisions to run for public office and his decisions as a legislator.<\/p>\n\n

Dodd’s wife, Jackie Clegg, is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was raised in Utah. His two young daughters have been baptized in the Catholic Church and blessed in the Mormon faith, and Dodd\u00a0says<\/a>\u00a0that they will have the opportunity to choose their faith. “They’re attending both and they’re going to have to form some decisions about that,” he said.<\/p>\n\n

Dodd\u00a0says<\/a>\u00a0that he attends mass at Catholic churches in Washington, D.C., and Connecticut and finds other Catholic churches when traveling. If nominated, Dodd would be the fourth Roman Catholic to win a presidential nomination. If elected, he would be the second Catholic president, following John F. Kennedy.<\/p>\n\n

On The Issues<\/h2>\n\n

Abortion\u00a0<\/strong>Dodd has\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0abortion “ought to be rare, safe and legal” and that “we ought to be working together on how we reduce the incidence of abortion” rather than continuing to fight about\u00a0Roe v. Wade<\/i>. Dodd has\u00a0criticized<\/a>\u00a0the Vatican’s condemnation of Catholic politicians who support abortion rights.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Church and State\u00a0<\/strong>Dodd has\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0that the separation of church and state should be understood not as a strict barrier between the two but as a relationship where one can reflect the other. “Faith can influence policy and \u2026 state can influence how we allow for the space and tolerance of religious traditions,” he said. “I don’t think we’ve done a very good job of connecting those ideas and concepts.” Doddsays<\/a>\u00a0that while his Catholicism is an important part of his identity, his obligation as a senator is to uphold the law of the land regardless of his personal faith.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Death Penalty\u00a0<\/strong>Dodd has\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0that capital punishment is used too widely, but there are certain circumstances where he “would not exclude the use of the death penalty.” He says that he would not call for a moratorium on capital punishment. He has called for judicial reform and a closer look at the country’s criminal justice system so that “we can do a better job of making decisions” about the death penalty.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Education\u00a0<\/strong>While in the Senate, Dodd has repeatedly voted against measures advocating school prayer in public schools, including a\u00a01984 constitutional amendment<\/a>\u00a0that would have authorized periods of vocal prayer and a\u00a01994 bill<\/a>\u00a0to require schools to allow voluntary school prayer. In 1996, he\u00a0argued against<\/a>\u00a0a bill to set up a federally funded school voucher plan.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Environment\u00a0<\/strong>Dodd’s\u00a0energy plan<\/a>\u00a0involves reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2050 and ending American dependence on oil from the Middle East by 2015. He has also\u00a0suggested<\/a>\u00a0tax breaks and other incentives for taxpayers who conserve energy. He favors a\u00a0Corporate Carbon Tax<\/a>that would impose a per-ton fee on businesses for carbon emissions and use the resulting profits to invest in renewable energy sources.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Faith-Based Initiatives\u00a0<\/strong>Dodd has\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0that “we’ve made a huge mistake” not talking about faith in the public sector and that “people confuse the notion of having faith-based policy and replacing policy with faith beliefs.”\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

[he\/she was]<\/p>\n\n\n

Health Care\u00a0<\/strong>Dodd authored the\u00a01993 Family Medical Leave Act<\/a>, which allows workers to take time off without pay to care for a sick child or family member. He is a member of the\u00a0Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions<\/a>\u00a0and the chairman of the\u00a0Subcommittee on Children and Families<\/a>. Dodd has\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0that if he is elected president, he will make health care legislation to cover all Americans a priority.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Immigration\u00a0<\/strong>Dodd\u00a0supports<\/a>\u00a0creating a pathway to earned citizenship for undocumented workers already in the U.S. He also\u00a0favors<\/a>\u00a0increased penalties for employers of illegal immigrants, and strengthening the Mexican border through a partnership with the Mexican government. Dodd\u00a0voted for<\/a>\u00a0theComprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006<\/a>. He is a fluent Spanish speaker and opposes efforts to make English a national language.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Iraq War\u00a0<\/strong>While Dodd voted in 2002 to authorize military action in Iraq, he now\u00a0says<\/a>\u00a0that the war was based on “fabricated” justifications and no longer meets the criteria for a “just war” in the Catholic tradition. He\u00a0co-sponsored<\/a>\u00a0legislation that would have set an end date of March 2008 for continued funding for the conflict in Iraq. Dodd has called for the religious and political leaders in Iraq to take responsibility for the situation in their country, saying, “It’s really now for the Sunnis and Shias \u2026 to decide whether or not they want a compromise.”\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Poverty\u00a0<\/strong>Dodd\u00a0says<\/a>\u00a0that one of his policy priorities influenced by Catholic social teachings and the emphasis on the common good is “creating safety nets for the disadvantaged.” As a senator, one of Dodd’s priorities has been helping children, and he has authored numerous\u00a0child care bills<\/a>. Dodd has favored increases in the\u00a0federal minimum wage<\/a>.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Stem Cell Research\u00a0<\/strong>Dodd supports embryonic stem cell research in cases when the embryos used would otherwise be destroyed or discarded. He has\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0that he hopes that science will eventually make the issue of embryonic stem cell research “a moot one.” He has supported measures to ban human cloning.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Background Hometown East Haddam, Conn. Age 65 Religion Catholic Education University of Louisville School of Law, J.D., 1972 Providence College, B.A., 1966 Candidate Website www.chrisdodd.com Candidacy Status Formally withdrew candidacy Jan. 3, 2008 Formally declared candidacy Jan. 11, 2007 Endorsed Barack Obama Feb. 26, 2008 Political Experience U.S. Senator from Connecticut, 1981-present U.S. Representative from […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":139,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"sub_headline":"","sub_title":"","_prc_public_revisions":[],"_ppp_expiration_hours":0,"_ppp_enabled":false,"ai_generated_summary":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_api_pending":"","apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_hidden":false,"relatedPosts":[],"reportMaterials":[],"multiSectionReport":[],"package_parts__enabled":false,"package_parts":[],"datacite_doi":"","datacite_doi_citation":"","_prc_seo_qr_attachment_id":0,"spoken_article_player_enabled":true,"displayBylines":false,"footnotes":"","prc_watchers":[],"_prc_fork_parent":0,"_prc_fork_status":"","_prc_active_fork":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[46,24,39],"tags":[],"bylines":[],"collection":[],"datasets":[],"level_of_effort":[],"primary_audience":[],"information_type":[],"_post_visibility":[],"formats":[458],"_fund_pool":[],"languages":[],"regions-countries":[],"research-teams":[517],"workflow-status":[],"class_list":["post-74269","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-election-2008","category-religion","category-us-elections-voters","formats-report","research-teams-religion"],"label":false,"post_parent":0,"word_count":1150,"canonical_url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2008\/11\/04\/religion-and-politics-08-christopher-dodd\/","art_direction":false,"_embeds":[],"watchers":[],"table_of_contents":[],"report_materials":"","report_pagination":{"current_post":null,"next_post":null,"previous_post":null,"pagination_items":[]},"parent_info":{"parent_title":"Religion and Politics \u201908: Christopher Dodd","parent_id":74269},"materialsOrdered":[],"chaptersOrdered":[],"partsOrdered":[],"partsEnabled":false,"datacite_doi":"","prc_seo_data":{"title":"Religion and Politics \u201908: Christopher Dodd","description":"Background Hometown East Haddam, Conn. 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