The federal government should create a loan pool to help families of modest means pay for college, U.S. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, D-Conn., told two audiences of students Tuesday.

“As a country, we lose a lot when the ability to get a college education depends solely upon whether a student has wealthy parents or not,” Dodd told a group of more than 100 juniors and seniors at Cheshire High School.

NORWALK - In the face of looming federal budget constraints, U.S. Sen. Christopher Dodd told employees of Norden Systems on Monday that $20 million has been included in the 2009 defense budget for an improved radar system to be built at the plant.

Dodd, D-Conn., who worked with Department of Defense Congressional offices to secure the funding, credited the 400 employees for their success in developing the radar technology.

Until recently, probably few Americans understood the scope of our country's economic problems. While increasing foreclosure rates and the rising price of food and fuel certainly made headlines, only a handful of people actually knew how bad the problem was — and how much worse it could get. Some did see this crisis coming and sounded the alarms. Sen. Christopher Dodd, who has worked with the Connecticut Housing Coalition for years on the issues of homeownership, foreclosure prevention and community development, was one of the first politicians to recognize this growing problem. Now, he is being unfairly accused of sitting on the sidelines as this crisis unfolded.

This week, with Wall Street tanking, the economy teetering and the world trembling, a frightened Congress and a lame duck president tried to craft history's biggest bailout. It was like watching someone do a crossword puzzle while having a heart attack. So, how did we get here?

The roots of the crisis run deep, but the bailout brigade formed just last March when the Federal Reserve loaned Morgan Chase $29 billion to buy Bear Stearns for $2 a share. It was a "non recourse loan," meaning the sole collateral was the same worthless mortgages that sank the firm. 

The U.S. Treasury's plan to rescue failing financial firms — described as the most sweeping government intervention in Wall Street since the Great Depression — is running into resistance.

A proposal by U.S. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, D-Conn., would make it more palatable.

Many in Congress, particularly conservative Republicans, are worried about the cost and the power that the plan would give Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr., a former Goldman Sachs executive. They wonder whether his allegiance is with Wall Street or Main Street.

In his bluntest assessment to date, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd on Tuesday rejected handing the Bush administration a $700 billion blank check to bail out Wall Street.

"The administration needs to know that what they've sent to us is not acceptable," Dodd said after his committee spent more than five hours grilling the Bush administration's top economic advisers on their proposal to use taxpayer funds to purchase bad debt from financial service institutions.

U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, was diplomatic but firm Monday as he led a Democratic push to require significant oversight on a proposed federal bailout of the financial industry.

Dodd spent the day pushing a 44-page draft that would give Bush administration officials the financial firepower they seek to beat back the economic crisis - authority to spend $700 billion in public funds to purchase so-called “toxic” investments from now-struggling financial instutions.

If you were to ask Democrats Barney Frank and Chris Dodd -- the principal architects of the massive housing bill signed yesterday by President Bush -- which of its many features pleases them most, the answer would surprise you.

It is not the bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the embattled mortgage giants, or the aid the bill provides for thousands of homeowners struggling to afford their subprime loans in a faltering real estate market.

If you were to ask Democrats Barney Frank and Chris Dodd — the principal architects of the massive housing bill signed Wednesday by President Bush — which of its many features pleases them most, the answer would surprise you.

It is not the bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the embattled mortgage giants, or the aid the bill provides for thousands of homeowners struggling to afford subprime loans in a faltering real estate market.

The state housing market continues to roil the economy, and experts say we still may not have hit the worst of it. With so much uncertainty, the prospect of relief, even in limited form, from the federal government comes as welcome news. With that uncertainty in mind, the U.S. Senate should pass forthwith Sen. Christopher J. Dodd's plan to help homeowners caught in the subprime mortgage debacle. Dodd has spent months working out a compromise, gaining the support of most Republicans on Senate Banking Committee, which he chairs.