Free Republic

An aide to U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd dismissed as "old news" a report Monday that said the Connecticut Democrat collected more than $160,000 from American International Group employees and their spouses after a top executive urged employees to give. The Washington Times reported that in a November 2006 e-mail, the head of the troubled Financial Products unit told employees that Dodd was "next in line" to chair the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, where he would "have the opportunity to set the committee's agenda on issues critical to the financial services industry."