A new Quinnipiac poll does not have good news for Chris Dodd:
Connecticut Sen. Christopher Dodd trails former U.S. Rep. Rob Simmons, a possible Republican challenger, 50 - 34 percent in the 2010 Senate race, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today, as voters disapprove 58 - 33 percent of the job the Democratic incumbent is doing, his lowest approval rating ever.
Matched against two other possible Republican challengers, Sen. Dodd trails both State Sen. Sam Caligiuri 41 - 37 percent and former ambassador Tom Foley 43 - 35 percent, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds.
In the Dodd-Simmons matchup, Democrats back Dodd by only 58 - 27 percent while Simmons leads 87 - 6 percent among Republicans and 56 - 25 percent among independent voters.
http://www.quinnipiac.edu/...
The incumbent's approval is down from 49 - 44 percent March 10.
Dodd gets a negative 30 - 58 percent favorability rating, compared to 39 -12 percent favorable for Simmons with 47 percent who don't know enough to form an opinion. More than 80 percent of Connecticut voters don't know enough about Caligiuri or Foley to form an opinion.
"A 33 percent job approval is unheard of for a 30-year incumbent, especially a Democrat in a blue state. Sen. Christopher Dodd's numbers among Democrats are especially devastating. Since the AIG controversy, his approval rating among Democrats is down to 51 percent, and only 58 percent of Democrats say they will vote for him against Simmons, who at this point is the best known and strongest Republican challenger," said Quinnipiac University Poll Director Douglas Schwartz, PhD.
"The generic numbers are even worse for Dodd than the specific matchup numbers, with only a third saying they probably or definitely will vote for Dodd compared to 59 percent saying they definitely or probably won't vote for him," Dr. Schwartz added.
Dodd has been in congress for 35 years, and a senator for 5 terms. It's no shame if he starts thinking about retirement. Democrats have a strong bench: AG Richard Blumenthal, Ned Lamont, or one of several congresspeople could step and hold the seat without too much trouble.
I just hope Dodd does not follow the course of his father, who cost the Democrats a senate seat in 1970.
http://www.ctlocalpolitics.net/...
On a side note, Obama has a 71% approval rating, while Joe Lieberman's is considerably less:
Sen. Joseph Lieberman gets a 46 - 47 percent split approval rating, including 64 - 33 percent among Republicans and 50 - 42 percent among independent voters. Democrats disapprove of the Democrat turned independent 63 - 31 percent