Foley officially in GOP primary to face Dodd

As expected, former Ambassador to Ireland Tom Foley has signed up for the GOP primary to face Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) in 2010.

Foley probably poses the biggest obstacle to former Rep. Rob Simmons (R-Conn.), though it will be interesting to see what kind of fundraising numbers state Sen. Sam Caligiuri (R) can post in the second quarter.

It’s been remarkable how cool Republicans have been about accepting this primary as fait accompli. The state has an August primary – relatively late – and Dodd is capable of raising gobs of money.

The GOP might have to hope businessman Merrick Alpert or former Greenwich First Selectman Roger Pearson can get some traction against Dodd in the Democratic primary, and force him to use some of his resources.