Richard Blumenthal

Richard Blumenthal represents the intersection of enormous personal wealth, legal ambition, and selective truth-telling. Born in 1946 in Brooklyn, New York, he grew up in privilege — his father was a German Jewish immigrant who built a successful commodities trading business. He attended Harvard, Yale Law, clerked for Justice Harry Blackmun, and served as Connecticut's AG for 20 years (1990-2010). The defining controversy is his military service misrepresentation. During Vietnam, Blumenthal obtained at least five military deferments before joining the Marine Corps Reserve stateside. He never deployed to Vietnam. But on multiple occasions he told audiences he had 'served in Vietnam' — caught on video and exposed by the New York Times during his 2010 campaign. He won by 12 points anyway. Blumenthal's evolution has been from consumer-protection moderate to the Senate's aggressive tech regulator. On the Judiciary Committee, his grilling of Mark Zuckerberg about children's safety produced some of the most-watched hearing moments. He has pushed for Section 230 reform, children's privacy protections, and Big Tech antitrust enforcement. His key relationships are defined by wealth. Married to Cynthia Malkin, daughter of real estate billionaire Peter Malkin (owner of the Empire State Building), Blumenthal has a net worth of $70-100 million. This gives donor independence but raises questions about understanding ordinary Americans' struggles. Contradictions extend beyond Vietnam: he champions consumer protection while his family's real estate empire faces tenant complaints; he's among the top 5 wealthiest senators while positioning as a working-family advocate; he criticizes dark money while benefiting from incumbency advantages. His fundraising is modest (~$15M/cycle) because Connecticut is safe Democratic. His real power comes through the Judiciary Committee and his personal wealth. He clerked for Justice Blackmun, author of Roe v. Wade — an ironic credential given the Court's subsequent direction.