The stink around U.S. Senator Chris Dodd hasn’t seemed to dissipate.  Last week’s Q Poll showed that Dodd isn’t passing the smell test with Connecticut voters any more, with 51% of Nutmeggers refusing to endorse a fifth term in the U.S. Senate for Dodd.  Politico pounded the issue today before breaking a bit of news regarding possible challengers.

Democrats point out that the poll came out within days of Dodd’s explanation for the mortgage — and his efforts at damage control had been panned by most of the Connecticut media. In an attempt to defuse the long-simmering controversy, the senator held a press conference earlier this month where he said he regretted his dealings with Countrywide and announced he will be refinancing the controversial loans. At the press conference, he described his relationship with Mozilo as “enhanced customer service.”

The Politico piece then goes on to talk about potential challengers to Senator Dodd, including businessman and former Ambassador to Ireland Thomas Foley, former U.S. Congressman Christopher Shays, and the much talked about potential candidacy of former U.S. Congressman Rob Simmons.  Simmons gives the scoop on his decision-making timeline:

One of those ousted GOP incumbents, former Rep. Rob Simmons, told Politico he is “seriously exploring” running and would be making a final decision by the end of March. Simmons, who held a solidly Democratic seat in southeastern Connecticut before losing by 83 votes in 2006, met with NRSC Chairman John Cornyn of Texas last month to chat about a prospective campaign.

The Dodd defense to most of these articles has been, quite literally, the realization that Sen. Dodd will have more than enough money to whitewash the problem come 2010.  The latest iteration:

On the fundraising front, Dodd reported about $1.1 million combined in his Senate and presidential campaign accounts — an amount that is less than what many vulnerable incumbents have on hand. But as chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, he is poised to quickly replenish his coffers in preparation for a tough race.

This is thinly veiled code for: Senator Dodd has been buttering these banking guys up for awhile now, and they are going to happily return the favor in 2010.  It is, in practical terms, merely a different version of Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich’s pay-for-play scam, except this time it is happening in full view of the public.  Let’s hope people see through it.

Source: Kraushaar, Josh.  “Mortgage Deal May Hurt Dodd“  Politico, February 17, 2009.