Washington Bigwigs Fighting For Their Careers

The ads for Harry Reid, Senator from Nevada (above), and Chris Dodd, Senator from Connecticut (below), show the distance between Washington and voters out in the country. Both Democratic lawmakers are up for re-election next year and they’re in deep trouble. The latest Rasmussen polls (taken a few days ago) show that Dodd faces particularly tough competition from Rob Simmons, a former Republican Congressman; Reid’s greatest challengers are a former state senator, Sue Lowden, and businessman Danny Tarkanian. A lot can happen in a year of course but Reid and Dodd are both viewed as typical representatives of the Washington establishment, which is never a good thing, especially when you’re also occasionally accused of using your position to get rich. Both senators have been embroiled in financial controversies. Although Reid and Dodd have never been permanently tainted by these affairs, Republicans are not finding it hard to dig up dirt for their attack ads.

Both men are highly profiled in Washington – Reid as the current Senate Majority Leader and Dodd as the Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee. That makes them easy targets for voters who are constantly disenchanted with Congress; regardless of party affiliation, people always give Congress a very low approval rating. The fact that there is much controversy swirling around the health care plans and the economy bring much pain to both men because they’re connected to it, directly or by association. Also, being a party leader is a particularly tough position because the other party will do anything to bring you down. It’s a matter of prestige. Republicans loved to see Tom Daschle get rejected by voters just as much as Democrats cheered over the disintegration of Tom DeLay’s career. Now, the GOP will do anything in their power to take out Reid and Dodd.

The Reid ad portrays the Nevada Senator as someone who survived poverty as a child and would go on to take on the Mafia; the Dodd ad is from June and shows the late, great Senator Ted Kennedy promote his dear friend. A few days ago, Vice President Joe Biden also made an appearance in Connecticut in an effort to boost the Senator’s numbers. He would love it if voters saw things the way the ad shows them… but the distance between these Beltway pros and the voters of Nevada and Connecticut may be too great to bridge.