Richard Blumenthal

Richard Blumenthal (born February 13, 1946) is an American attorney and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Connecticut since 2011. A Democrat, he previously served five terms as Connecticut's attorney general from 1991 to 2011, during which he initiated lawsuits against tobacco companies for deceptive marketing practices targeting youth, contributing to a national settlement that reduced smoking rates among minors and recovered substantial funds for the state. Blumenthal also held earlier roles including U.S. attorney for Connecticut from 1977 to 1981 and member of the Connecticut General Assembly in the 1980s.

Blumenthal enlisted in the United States Marine Corps Reserve in 1970, serving six years and attaining the rank of sergeant before an honorable discharge in 1976, with all duty performed stateside and no deployment to Vietnam. Despite this record, he made numerous public statements claiming or implying service "in Vietnam," as documented in speeches to veterans and press releases from the 2000s, prompting widespread criticism for misrepresenting his military experience during his 2010 Senate campaign and beyond. Blumenthal attributed these to errors or "misplaced words," but veterans' organizations such as the VFW demanded an apology, citing the pattern of inaccuracies.

Richard Blumenthal was born on February 13, 1946, at Brooklyn Hospital in New York City to Martin A. Blumenthal and Jane (née Rosenstock) Blumenthal. His father, a German Jewish immigrant from Frankfurt, fled Nazi Germany at age 17 or 18 and later established himself as a prominent commodities broker in the United States. His mother, raised on Nebraska farmland, pursued a career as a social worker after moving eastward. The family belonged to a well-to-do Jewish household, reflecting the father's professional success in finance.