Barney Frank Sleeping With The Enemy: Why Doesn't This Surprise Me?

If you wondered why U.S. Rep. Barney Frank was so vocal in his defense of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac four years ago when he fought efforts by the Bush administration and congressional Republicans to regulate the two out-of-control mortgage lender giants, you need look no further than the man sleeping next to him in his bed for many years. Frank's spouse, significant other, gay lover or whatever you want to call him was Herb Moses, a top executive at Fannie Mae. The mainstream media, while poking and prodding constantly into the private lives of Republicans like Gov. Sarah Pallin, won't touch the ethically-challenged, openly gay Frank. Even Frank said Palin's family was fair game. "Frank has argued that family life “should be fair game for campaign discussion,” wrote the Associated Press on Sept. 2. "The comment was in reference to GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin and her pregnant daughter. “They’re the ones that made an issue of her family,” the Massachusetts Democrat said to the AP." Business and Media notes the media's silence on Frank's ties to the scandal:

The media coverage of Frank’s coziness with Fannie Mae and his pro-Fannie Mae stances has been lacking. Of the eight appearances Frank made on the three broadcasts networks between Jan. 1, 2008, and Sept. 21, 2008, none of his comments dealt with the potential conflicts of interest. Only six of the appearances dealt with the economy in general and two of those appearances, including an April 6, 2008 appearance on CBS’s “60 Minutes” were about his opposition to a manned mission to Mars . . .

The news media have covered the relationship in the past, but there have been no mentions since 2005, according to Nexis and despite the collapse of Fannie Mae. The July 3, 1998, Reliable Source column in The Washington Post reported 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. and Lehman Brothers – all recently participants in government bailouts. But Frank has derailed efforts to regulate the institution, as well as denying it posed any financial risk. Frank’s office has been unresponsive to efforts by the Business & Media Institute to comment on these potential conflicts of interest.

Although Frank had broken up with Moses at the time Fannie Mae problems surfaced, he remained close friends with Moses and collected over $40,000 from Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae over the past decade. He has pushed legislation supported by the mortgage giants and argued that a 2004 report by the Bush administration raised "no safety and soundness" issues. This isn't the first time one of Frank's lovers has clouded his judgment. He was first outed as a gay man when it was discovered that a young gay lover he hired to work in his congressional office was running a male prostitution ring out of his D.C. apartment. The House reprimanded him after an ethics investigation into the matter. He is perhaps one of the most partisan and obnoxious members of the House and a complete embarrassment to the gay community, although many GLBT groups foolishly tout him as some great civil rights leader. His selfish desire to satisfy his own sexual appetite at the expense of the public good is self-evident from his actions. It's unfortunate that he represents a gerry-mandered district in Massachusetts where he can expect to be re-elected year after year despite his utter arrogance and incompetence. If he had any decency, he would recuse himself from any participation in the bailout negotiations and apologize to the American taxpayers for his complicit role in this financial disaster.