Barney Frank

Barney Frank
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Massachusetts's 4th district
In office
January 3, 1981 – January 3, 2013
Preceded byRobert Drinan
Succeeded byJoe Kennedy III
Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee
In office
January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2013
Preceded bySpencer Bachus
Succeeded byMaxine Waters
In office
January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2007
Preceded byJohn LaFalce
Succeeded bySpencer Bachus
Chair of the House Financial Services Committee
In office
January 4, 2007 – January 3, 2011
Preceded byMike Oxley
Succeeded bySpencer Bachus
Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives
In office
January 3, 1973 – January 3, 1981
Preceded byEliot Wadsworth
Succeeded byThomas Vallely
Constituency5th Suffolk (1973–1979)
8th Suffolk (1979–1981)
Personal details
Born
Barnett Frank

(1940-03-31) March 31, 1940 (age 84)
Bayonne, New Jersey, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Jim Ready
​
(m. 2012)​
EducationHarvard University (BA, JD)
Barney Frank's voice
Frank, as chair of the House Financial Services Committee, on the need for the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008
Recorded September 29, 2008

Barnett Frank (born March 31, 1940) is a retired American politician. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts from 1981 to 2013. A Democrat, Frank served as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee from 2007 to 2011 and was a leading co-sponsor of the 2010 Dodd–Frank Act. Frank, a resident of Newton, Massachusetts, was considered the most prominent gay politician in the United States during his time in Congress.[1][2][3][4][5]

Born and raised in Bayonne, New Jersey, Frank graduated from Bayonne High School, Harvard College and Harvard Law School.[6] He worked as a political aide before winning election to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1972. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1980 with 52 percent of the vote. He was re-elected every term thereafter by wide margins. In 1987, he publicly came out as gay, becoming the first member of Congress to do so voluntarily. From 2003 until his retirement, Frank was the leading Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, and he served as committee chairman when his party held a House majority from 2007 to 2011. In July 2012, he married his long-time partner, James Ready, becoming the first member of Congress to marry someone of the same sex while in office.[7][8] Frank did not seek re-election in 2012, and was succeeded by fellow Democrat Joe Kennedy III.[9] Frank's autobiography, A Life in Politics from the Great Society to Same-Sex Marriage, was published in 2015.[10][11]

Prior to his time in the House of Representatives, Frank served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1973 to 1981.[12][13][14][15]

  1. ^ "Barney Frank Biography". The Biography Channel. Archived from the original on July 19, 2012. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  2. ^ Peoples, Steve (December 16, 2012). "Liberal icon Frank eyes high-profile retirement". Associated Press. Archived from the original on December 17, 2012.
  3. ^ O'Keefe, Ed (December 3, 2012). "When Barney Frank announced he was 'coming out of the room' (er ... the closet)". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  4. ^ Kiritsy, Laura (May 31, 2007). "Happy Anniversary, Barney Frank!". Edge Boston. Archived from the original on January 19, 2012.
  5. ^ "3rd Annual Power 50". Out. April 2009. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  6. ^ Barone, Michael; Ujifusa, Grant (1987). The Almanac of American Politics 1988. p. 555.
  7. ^ Sink, Justin (January 26, 2012). "Barney Frank To Marry Longtime Partner". The Hill. Retrieved March 1, 2012.
  8. ^ Goh, Melisa (July 8, 2012). "Barney Frank Gets Married; The Bridegrooms Wore Black". NPR. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  9. ^ Taylor, jessica (November 28, 2011). "Barney Frank to retire from Congress". National Journal. Archived from the original on November 30, 2011. Retrieved November 28, 2011.
  10. ^ Macmillan. "Frank". Macmillan.
  11. ^ "'Frank: A Life in Politics From the Great Society to Same-Sex Marriage' by Barney Frank". The Boston Globe.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference 1975-76 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference 1973-1974 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference 1977-78 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference 1979-80 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).