"I want to get the people who have been concerned about equity to support growth policies and the people who have been chafing that we aren't doing enough for growth to support policies that provide equity." [Excerpt from Congressman Frank's interview on PBS Nightly Business Report, 11-30-06]

Rep. Frank offers business a 'grand bargain'
Reduced regulations for more job benefits
Boston Globe
November 19, 2006
By Michael Kranish and Ross Kerber

"What I want to do is break that deadlock...A lot of policies that the business community wants us to adopt for growth are now blocked. On the other hand, the business community is successfully blocking the minimum wage [increase] and created a very anti union attitude in the Congress...I'm a capitalist, and that means I'm for inequality. But you reach a point where you get more inequality than is healthy, and I believe we're at that point. What we want to do is to look at public policies that'll get some bigger share of the increased wealth into wages, and in return you'll see Democrats as internationalists. . .. I really urge the business community to join us."

Nightly Business Report, PBS
November 30, 2006
Paul Kangas, Susie Gharib, hosts

"What you`ve got is a kind of a double field now. The business community, which has been in control pointedly for a long time with its allies has blocked our efforts to do anything about equity. They`ve frustrated the National Labor Relations Act. You can`t join a union these days. Health care is dwindling. People`s pensions aren`t what they used to be. Real wages have actually slipped some. The minimum wage hasn`t been brought up.

"On the other hand, the people who care about equity have been able to block foreign trade, foreign direct investments, et cetera. I want to say to the business community, look, help us get health care out of the workplace and have a good universal health care system. Let people join unions without being harassed...Raise the minimum wage. Help more people get higher education partly through public spending. In return let`s go do trade agreements, although with some environmental and labor protections. Let`s allow foreign direct investment without restriction. That`s what I want to do. I want to get the people who have been concerned about equity to support growth policies and the people who have been chafing that we aren`t doing enough for growth to support policies that provide equity."

CNBC: Kudlow & Company
November 28, 2006
Larry Kudlow, host

"And what I want to do is say, `Look, some of us on the Democratic side have been concerned about what we think are equity issues in the society. Some of you on the business side think we have been blocking growth. Let's put the two together. Let's see if we come up with ways we can promote growth but deal with some of the equity.

"I do think--and Alan Greenspan said this in 2004, Ben Bernanke has basically reaffirmed it--recently, almost all of the increased wealth, from productivity increases that came from globalization and technology have gone to the owners of capital. Of course, they should get a lot of it. But too little has gone to people who work for wages, and they have therefore almost gone on strike against the system. And I want to see if we can break that open."

Fox News Sunday
Interview with U.S. Reps. Charles Rangel, John Dingell, and Barney Frank
November 26, 2006
Chris Wallace, Host

"We're in a gridlock economic position right now. All the things that you listen to the financial community tell us are important for economic growth are kind of stalled. In some cases, I think the stalling is appropriate, because they weren't the things that were wise. In other cases, I agree with them.

"The president tried to do something on immigration and it was stopped by the right wing of his own party, but also a lot of general unhappiness about the economy. We can't get a good bill through to reorganize how we deal with foreign investment, again because of these concerns.

"What we've had is this: The economy has shown some growth in the last few years, but according to both Alan Greenspan and Ben Bernanke and virtually everybody else, the growth has been more uneven and more unequally distributed than in any time in recent American memory.

"And so what you've got is the average American saying, look, don't tell me that I should implement productivity and I should go into trade deals, because those may have a short-term negative effect on me. You say they'll be good for the economy as a whole, but I'm not the economy as a whole. I'm me.

"What we've got is at the same time, they're blocking unionization, they've got a very anti-labor National Labor Relations Board, they won't accept a minimum wage increase, health care has become a great burden for working people. And what I say is let's put it all on the table, let's get together, and let's do some things that will help growth, but in a way that does not promote more inequality. And I'm hoping that the business community will be responsive to that."