Democratic Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., is taking a swipe at tea party activists in a fundraising letter for Massachusetts Senate candidate Martha Coakley.
She faces a spirited challenge in Tuesday’s contest from Republican Scott Brown for the seat that opened when Ted Kennedy died last year. And tea partyers are rallying hard for Brown.
“Ted was my best friend in the Senate, and best friends always fight for each other,” Dodd wrote in the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee letter.
“So when I saw that Martha was being attacked by tea partyers and right-wing radicals – they raised over $1 million in one day – I knew I needed to do everything I could to help.”
Most polls show the Brown-Coakley race as a dead heat. Thus the strong words from Dodd, who is retiring this year to avoid an election battle of his own.
“Healthcare was the cause of my friend Ted Kennedy's life,” Dodd wrote. “So it sickens me that the Republican running to take Ted's place is vowing to be the 41st vote to kill healthcare reform.”
If Brown wins, Democrats will lack the 60 votes needed to end a Republican filibuster against the healthcare bill – or any other legislation.
“This seat represents more than Ted's progressive legacy,” Dodd wrote.
“This seat is the tipping point between a Senate that can pass President Obama's agenda and one frozen into inaction by Republican obstruction. Scott Brown is the face of that obstruction, and that's why we must help Martha.”
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