All posts tagged: Barney

Barney Frank Was Like No One Else

Barney Frank Was Like No One Else

Published by Sam Flores

When former Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts died on Tuesday at 86, he was already a human version of a historical artifact. Frank was famous in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, but like most of our­ politicians, he was mostly forgotten once he voluntarily left Congress, 13 years ago. Then suddenly, late last month, Frank was back in the public eye because of a characteristically brash and courageous decision: He announced that he was about to die. Obituary writers had a lot to work with when they wrote about Frank’s unconventional life and career. One obvious subject was Frank’s homosexuality, the source of much of the drama in his life. Another obvious topic was Frank’s gift for humor and wisecracks. And most significant was his imposing intellect, which usually made him the smartest man in the room, whatever the room. These were all rare attributes for a member of the modern-day House and Senate, where partisan banality reigns. In his distinctive manner, Barney Frank was a towering figure, although his own figure was …

Barney Frank, former congressman and gay-rights pioneer, dies at 86 : NPR

Barney Frank, former congressman and gay-rights pioneer, dies at 86 : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

US Rep. Barney Frank,D-MA, chairman of the US House Financial Services Committee conducts hearings on “Financial Market Regulatory Restructuring.” July 10, 2008 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. KAREN BLEIER/AFP via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption KAREN BLEIER/AFP via Getty Images Barney Frank, the liberal icon and gay-rights pioneer who represented Massachusetts in Congress for more than three decades, died Tuesday night at his home, according to a close friend who confirmed his death to member station GBH. He was 86 years old and had been receiving hospice care for congestive heart failure. Frank was the first member of Congress to voluntarily come out, and also the first to marry a same-sex partner. He says many of the conventional tactics they took to fight for gay-rights helped make “enormous progress” in a relatively short period of time. Recently asked by GBH if he wished he could do over any part of his career, Frank replied: “I would have come out earlier.” Read GBH’s full remembrance here. Frank’s last message for Democrats Barney Frank speaks …

Barney Frank, architect of landmark Wall Street reforms, dies at 86

Barney Frank, architect of landmark Wall Street reforms, dies at 86

Published by Sam Flores

Barney Frank, former U.S. Congressman Adam Jeffery | CNBC Former U.S. Representative Barney Frank, a quick-witted Democrat who gave his name to a landmark financial reform bill after the economic crisis of 2007-2009, has died, his sister Ann Lewis said on Wednesday. He was 86. One of the best-known gay politicians of his time, ⁠Frank served for over 30 years in the U.S. House of Representatives as a member from Massachusetts and a liberal who gladly worked with Republicans. “He’s a guy you can sit down and ​deal with,” Republican Representative Tom Cole from Oklahoma ​said in 2011, when Frank chaired the ​House Financial Services Committee. Along with then Senator Chris Dodd, Frank spearheaded 2010 legislation that tightened banking regulations and consumer protections to avoid a repeat of the 2007 financial crash and subsequent Great Recession. Known as the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the law led to new rules on the previously unregulated off-exchange derivatives ⁠market, ‌and set up the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to shield consumers from predatory and abusive ⁠practices. It was regarded as one of the main successes in Congress of Barack Obama’s two-term presidency. ‘Things would …

Barney Frank, a liberal congressman and trailblazer for gay rights, dies. He was 86.

Barney Frank, a liberal congressman and trailblazer for gay rights, dies. He was 86.

Published by Sam Flores

WASHINGTON — Barney Frank, the longtime Democratic congressman and leading liberal who brought new visibility to gay rights and crafted the most significant reforms to the financial system in a generation, has died. He was 86. Frank died late Tuesday, according to Jim Segel, Frank’s former campaign manager and close friend. After representing broad swaths of Boston’s suburbs in Congress for 32 years, Frank and his husband moved to Ogunquit, Maine. He entered hospice there in April with congestive heart failure and is survived by his husband, Jim Ready, and sisters, the longtime Democratic strategist Ann Lewis and Doris Breay, along with brother David Frank. A self-described “left-handed gay Jew,” Frank was known for his acerbic wit, combative style and focus on marginalized communities. He represented the party’s left wing while keeping close with Democratic leaders who sometimes frustrated progressives. He is best known as a pioneer for LGBT rights. After decades of grappling with his sexuality, he publicly came out as gay in 1987, the first member of Congress to do so voluntarily. With his 2012 …

Why Barney Frank Came Out Against the Far Left

Why Barney Frank Came Out Against the Far Left

Published by José Betancourt

Barney Frank might not draw a connection between his coming out as gay nearly four decades ago and his coming out against left-wing dogmatism in the Democratic Party today. But the parallel is unmistakable: The 86-year-old former Democratic congressman from Massachusetts is shining a light on a sensitive subject that many people wish he would keep quiet about. In his forthcoming book, The Hard Path to Unity: Why We Must Reform the Left to Rescue Democracy, Frank contends that left-wingers have saddled his party with a “vote-repelling platform” of open borders, defunded police departments, and “the rule of the pronoun police.” By voicing his criticism of these stances, Frank hopes to give cover to fellow liberals who share his political concerns, if not his courage. “I know most Democrats agree with me,” Frank told me via Zoom from his home in Ogunquit, Maine, where he recently began hospice care. “But they’ve been intimidated out of saying so.” Frank’s physical infirmity had no apparent effect on his mental acuity and, if anything, made his message more …

View from Our Sofa: Bradley and Barney Walsh

View from Our Sofa: Bradley and Barney Walsh

Published by Daniella Wilson

Add Gladiators and Casualty to your watchlist What’s the view from your sofa? Bradley There’s a plain wall with a telly fixed to it, with lamps on either side. Seriously, it’s very traditional. Barney When I’m in Cardiff filming Casualty, the TV’s on a free-standing unit, there’s an Ikea fake plant in the corner, and a little painting on the wall. What have you enjoyed watching on TV recently? Bradley Barney’s my oracle. Originally he said we had to watch Breaking Bad, then he said we had to watch Better Call Saul, and now we’re watching Vince Gilligan’s new series… Barney …Pluribus. There’s also a comedy series I love called The Studio starring Seth Rogen, which is in my top five series of all time. It is one of the funniest things I have ever seen. Gladiators is such a huge show, especially for family viewing. What did you watch together as a family? Barney When I was a kid there was nothing I loved more than sitting with Mum and Dad watching the telly. …