Posted on 03/18/2009 7:19:51 AM PDT by governsleastgovernsbest
Really, what is up with Barney Frank? A few days ago, I noted what a sourpuss performance he put in on Fox News Sunday. The Massachusetts Dem was back at it this morning, first correcting, then snapping at his Early Show host, Maggie Rodriguez.
The topic was, of course, the AIG bonuses, and Barney was firmly on the outrage bandwagon. Well get to the substance in a bit, but lets start with Franks rude form . . .
He had been pointing the finger at the Federal Reserve, which gave the first bailout money to AIG back in September. That led to this exchange.
View video here.
(Excerpt) Read more at finkelblog.com ...
Rude Barney at it again ping to Today show list.
Does that flamer have any teeth he is one sick looking dude
When Barney snaps, poodles tremble.
By Jeff Poor
Business & Media Institute, 9/24/2008
excerpt...
"Frank, who is openly gay, had a relationship with Herb Moses, an executive for the now-government controlled Fannie Mae. The column revealed the two had split up at the time but also said Frank was referring to Moses as his "spouse." Another Washington Post report said Frank called Moses his "lover" and that the two were "still friends" after the breakup.
Frank was and remains a stalwart defender of Fannie Mae, which is now under FBI investigation along with its sister organization Freddie Mac, American International Group Inc. (NYSE:AIG) and Lehman Brothers (NYSE:LEH) all recently participants in government bailouts. But Frank has derailed efforts to regulate the institution, as well as denying it posed any financial risk."
http://www.businessandmedia.org/printer/2008/20080924145932.aspx
____________________________________________________________
Lawmaker Accused of Fannie Mae Conflict of Interest
By Bill Sammon, October 03, 2008
WASHINGTON -- Unqualified home buyers were not the only ones who benefitted from Massachusetts Rep. Barney Franks efforts to deregulate Fannie Mae throughout the 1990s.
So did Franks partner, a Fannie Mae executive at the forefront of the agencys push to relax lending restrictions.
Now that Fannie Mae is at the epicenter of a financial meltdown that threatens the U.S. economy, some are raising new questions about Frank's relationship with Herb Moses, who was Fannies assistant director for product initiatives. Moses worked at the government-sponsored enterprise from 1991 to 1998, while Frank was on the House Banking Committee, which had jurisdiction over Fannie.
Both Frank and Moses assured the Wall Street Journal in 1992 that they took pains to avoid any conflicts of interest. Critics, however, remain skeptical.
"Its absolutely a conflict," said Dan Gainor, vice president of the Business & Media Institute. "He was voting on Fannie Mae at a time when he was involved with a Fannie Mae executive. How is that not germane?
"If this had been his ex-wife and he was Republican, I would bet every penny I have - or at least whats not in the stock market - that this would be considered germane," added Gainor, a T. Boone Pickens Fellow. "But everybody wants to avoid it because hes gay. Its the quintessential double standard."
A top GOP House aide agreed.
"Cmon, he writes housing and banking laws and his boyfriend is a top exec at a firm that stands to gain from those laws?" the aide told FOX News. "No media ever takes note? Imagine what would happen if Franks political affiliation was R instead of D? Imagine what the media would say if [GOP former] Chairman [Mike] Oxleys wife or [GOP presidential nominee John] McCains wife was a top exec at Fannie for a decade while they wrote the nations housing and banking laws."
Franks office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Frank met Moses in 1987, the same year he became the first openly gay member of Congress.
"I am the only member of the congressional gay spouse caucus," Moses wrote in the Washington Post in 1991. "On Capitol Hill, Barney always introduces me as his lover."
The two lived together in a Washington home until they broke up in 1998, a few months after Moses ended his seven-year tenure at Fannie Mae, where he was the assistant director of product initiatives. According to National Mortgage News, Moses "helped develop many of Fannie Maes affordable housing and home improvement lending programs."
Critics say such programs led to the mortgage meltdown that prompted last months government takeover of Fannie Mae and its financial cousin, Freddie Mac. The giant firms are blamed for spreading bad mortgages throughout the private financial sector.
Although Frank now blames Republicans for the failure of Fannie and Freddie, he spent years blocking GOP lawmakers from imposing tougher regulations on the mortgage giants. In 1991, the year Moses was hired by Fannie, the Boston Globe reported that Frank pushed the agency to loosen regulations on mortgages for two- and three-family homes, even though they were defaulting at twice and five times the rate of single homes, respectively.
Three years later, President Clintons Department of Housing and Urban Development tried to impose a new regulation on Fannie, but was thwarted by Frank. Clinton now blames such Democrats for planting the seeds of todays economic crisis.
"I think the responsibility that the Democrats have may rest more in resisting any efforts by Republicans in the Congress or by me when I was president, to put some standards and tighten up a little on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac," Clinton said recently.
Bill Sammon is FOX News' Washington Deputy Managing Editor.
http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_story/0,3566,432501,00.html
____________________________________________________________
Rush Limbaugh's Barney Frank/Banking Queen parody of ABBA's "Dancing Queen":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwVWXN0Pyq4
Glenn Beck skewered Frank last night...worth listening to, just to hear Beck’s imitation of Frank.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWbKKydgj_o
Barney’s acting lately like he’s got something stuck up his butt.....no, wait.....that didn’t come out right......
..he protests too much..
In a long, distinguished line of unaccomplished dullard politicians from MA, Frank leads the pack.
Good grief, Massachusetts, what the hell is wrong you?
Old queens tend to get increasingly bitter.
Neither did that...
For his boyfriend's sake, I hope not...
Seriously, she actually stated how lucky the country was to have a financial expert like Barney Frank working to fix the mess, and he kept snapping at her with "clarifications" to her accounts of his wonderfulness.
I almost lost a television that night.
Barney Fag had a hand in bringing on the whole mess.
No kidding, have you heard an interview with Gore Vidal recently?
Too many jelly-dos.
He presents as a demented old sod
We grit our teeth and listen to this pompous fool lecture us about the US economy and leer at the prospect of raising our taxes
but who would let this lech near their teenage son?
My guess is that after he’s done using Bob Gates as coverman for losing the war in Iraq, obama’s ultimate revenge on rich white america will be to make barney Secretary of Defense to gay-ize the military
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.