Chris Dodd ran for president, so did Joe Lieberman.    Prescott Bush’s name was tossed around as a potential presidential candidate, so was Brien McMahon’s.    Senators from Connecticut are no strangers to White House ambitions, and Lowell Weicker was no exception.

In the early 1970s, Connecticut’s freshman senator became nationally known for his role on the Senate Watergate Committee.   Weicker, who was elected in 1970 with the help of President Richard Nixon,  later became a key figure in Nixon’s downfall.   

In this week’s Face the State flashback,  we have a report from the Channel 3 archives from May 1977, when Weicker was traveling the country amid speculation  he was considering a run for president in 1980.    Our report is from a  Channel 3 reporter named Chris Gordon,  who in this ancient, grainy video, seems to bear a resemblance to Ron Burgundy!     Gordon sports a snazzy leisure suit in his interview with Senator Weicker.  After all,  it was the disco era and apparently television reporters were also swept up in the fashion of the day.      Gordon now works for WRC-TV in Washington, D.C.

In the interview, Weicker talks about the state of the Republican party and the need for a moderate candidate.  He also talks to Gordon about President Nixon, who in 1977 was just starting to reappear on the public scene and had made some controversial comments about presidents being above the law.    The flashback is classic Lowell Weicker.

Meanwhile,  we were joined this Sunday by the present day Lowell Weicker, who has come out of retirement to talk about the current batch of senate candidates, the Connecticut GOP, and Governor Malloy.

You can watch the entire flashback right here:

http://www.wfsb.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=7088271

 Here is our Weicker interview http://dennishouse.wordpress.com/2012/04/27/weicker-one-party-rule-to-blame-for-states-fiscal-mess-gop-irrelevant/