The Life and Times of Rep. Barney Frank

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) may be best known as the first openly gay member of Congress. But he has been representing Massachusetts's Fourth Congressional District since 1981 and has a long history of speaking his mind rather ... frankly. As the Chair of the House Financial Services Committee, he was also one of the central architects of the $700 billion foreclosure "rescue plan."

All of these details have been well-known for years; other details in a new biography on Frank have not been as widely reported. We talk with Stuart Weisberg, the biographer behind "Barney Frank: The Story of America's Only Left-Handed, Gay, Jewish Congressman" about his book — and the scandals, secrets and accomplishments that have shaped Frank's life and career thus far.

To see Rep. Barney Frank in a recent rambunctious moment, watch this clip from a health care town hall in Dartmouth, Mass.:

Guests:

Stuart Weisberg, Esq.

Produced by:

Kristen Meinzer

Comments [3]

Jenny Q

Come on America, Barney has to go, before he bankrupts our nation and takes away the freedom of independent companies. Support his challenger, Earl Sholley. Lets take our country back!!!!
http://sholleyforcongress.us

Oct. 29 2009 10:36 AM
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Weeha Zapper

Barney he knows, it's not his fault
Let's use tax payer's money, to refill the vault

Have government take over, all the banks
Trust in your buddy, Barney Franks

Just borrow the cash, borrow from Mao
Our children to China, will learn to bow

A hat tip to Barney, on a poor persons side
Was he just stupid or perhaps he lied?

Only Barney knows and he won't tell.
Massachusetts take Barney back, [[ Comment edited. Clean language, please. -Eds ]]

Oct. 29 2009 08:22 AM
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Weeha Zapper

Barney Barney he's your man...
If he can't bankrupt ya, nobody can

He's from the government, with quite the plan
Here to help, his fellow man

Fannie Freddie, they're all OK.
They're not gonna fail, no possible way

Cough it up, or we will sue
Came threats from ACORN, and ACLU

A house on Barney, give huge loans to all
No check credit, house prices don't fall

Hand out the money, shouted Barney Frank
Empty the safe in every bank!

Barney knows accounting, he's a real smart 'man'
To bad he did not have a better plan

Barney still believes, as he has said
But now those mortgages, they are all dead

His bubble burst, house prices are cheap
Poor people are left, with a debt that's deep

The poor now crushed, with piles of debt
But Barney got his, you can bet

The banks are all broke, their balance is bare
Just print more money, who's to care?

Oct. 29 2009 08:21 AM
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