Dodd says his mortgages were standard

WASHINGTON, Oct. 23 (UPI) -- Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, D-Conn., says he did not receive special treatment from Countrywide Financial in obtaining nearly $780,000 in mortgages in 2003.

"These transactions were standard transactions at standard rates," Dodd said Wednesday, adding he could say little about the two mortgages on his home because of an ongoing bipartisan Senate ethics inquiry.

Dodd said he would at the "appropriate time" publicly release documents related to the mortgages he received when he was a senior Democrat on the Senate banking committee of which he now is chairman, the Hartford (Conn.) Courant reported Thursday.

In June, Portfolio magazine reported Countrywide allegedly waived some mortgage fees and costs for Dodd, a possible violation of Senate rules on gifts, the Courant reported.