Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, today asserted his confidence in America’s capital markets and offered his thoughts on how to strengthen those markets when addressing the U.S. Chamber of Commerce at its Capital Markets Summit.  Chairman Dodd is considered an authority on financial and economic issues, having served on the Banking Committee for over 26 years, through the 1987 stock market crash, the Asian financial crisis, and the burst of the internet bubble.

March 13, 2007

David, thank you for that kind introduction. I would use up all of my time if I reminded everyone of all your accomplishments, from founding this great organization, to helping write the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG). Suffice it to say that in the many years I’ve known you, your work has never failed to inspire me.

It’s always a source of great amusement back home when someone asks me to offer my opinions on schools. The truth is, if you ranked my family for accomplishments in education, I’d probably finish fifth or sixth.

I come from a family of educators, starting with my great-grandmother, Catherine Murphy, who came to this country unable to read or write her own name. But shortly after arriving in a little town in Connecticut, she was elected to the school board – because Catherine Murphy understood that the future belonged to education.

As part of his overarching goal to improve the nation’s security and prosperity, Chairman Chris Dodd (D-CT) today convened a hearing on the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA).  Chairman Dodd highlighted the effectiveness of the law and urged his colleagues to adopt a more permanent program to provide a federal backstop against catastrophic losses in the property and casualty insurance marketplace associated with massive terrorism damages.  TRIA was originally passed by Congress and signed into law after 9/11, and is scheduled to expire on December 31, 2007. 

Mr. President, I rise today to express my support for the confirmation of General George Casey to become the next Chief of Staff of the United States Army.

Let us be clear.  Our soldiers are fighting a grueling and dangerous war.   They need to know that their leaders will have no higher priority than their safety and wellbeing.  I believe that General Casey will do just that.

Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding this hearing. Secretary Rice, welcome back before this Committee. I appreciated your thoughts on the foreign policy goals our country should be pursuing and the resources needed to achieve this.

I want to thank you and the brave men and women of our State Department for your tireless efforts on behalf of our nation. I think I speak for many of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle when I say that we all remain cognizant of the great sacrifices of our diplomatic corps, even more so in this post-9/11 era where their work is all the more important and fraught with danger.

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), Chairman of the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee and a longtime advocate for affordable housing and home ownership, today convened a hearing on predatory lending practices in the mortgage market.