Barney Frank For Congress - Economy, Budget, Jobs & Trade

REP. FRANK'S REMARKS ECONOMY (Excerpt) NATIONAL PRESS CLUB January 3, 2007

Sun, 9 Mar 2008 14:59:41 -0400

Actually I did not take Dick Cheney's worry that I might be as a legislator making policy too personally because it's very clear, if
you see the vice president's approach, he doesn't think any legislator should be making policy, members of Congress, conservative or liberal, given his view of the Constitution. So I wasn't too upset.

I was a little troubled when one of my Republican -- soon to be no longer a colleague -- in his campaign in Indiana said that if the
Democrats won, Nancy Pelosi would allow me to implement the radical homosexual agenda. The problem is that he lost. He was the first
Republican declared defeated on Election Day, and that apparently left some people expecting me to produce a radical homosexual agenda, and I
don't have one. I felt inadequate.

I mean, I do think we should allow gay and lesbian people to serve in the military and get married and have a job but, by tradition of
radical standards, being in the military, working for a living and getting married are not the stuff of radicalism. So I'm still looking

Democratic Response to President Bush's Radio Address by Congressman Frank - January 19, 2008

Sun, 9 Mar 2008 12:03:13 -0400

“Good morning. This is Congressman Barney Frank of Massachusetts, Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee.

“The large jump in the unemployment rate in December is the latest sign that the economy is slowing down and most observers believe that this downturn will intensify.

“A crisis that spread rapidly from the subprime mortgage market to the broader financial markets, now threatens the entire economy and the well-being of American workers and their families.

“This week, the Federal Reserve reported that, in addition to major weakness in housing markets, manufacturing activity was down in most areas, and consumer spending during the holiday season was disappointing. According to the Conference Board, a leading business research organization that tracks consumer spending, consumers’ views toward the economy quote, ‘continue to paint a dismal picture,’ unquote, as Americans grow increasingly worried about their economic situation.

“Worse, this economic downturn comes after a period of growth that failed to benefit the majority of Americans. In fact, wages for workers are actually down in real terms since 2001, and income inequality has reached levels not seen since the 1920s.

A Timely Mortgage Fix (excerpt) By Steven Pearlstein, The Washington Post, November 18, 2007

Sun, 9 Mar 2008 16:10:07 -0400

A Timely Mortgage Fix (excerpt)
By Steven Pearlstein
The Washington Post
November 18, 2007

It is a red letter day when Congress is able to fight off the special interests, put aside partisanship, and actually address a serious economic problem. That’s exactly what the House of Representatives did last week with passage of a bill reforming the mortgage lending industry.

The bill sets national standards, outlaws fraudulent and abusive practices, and requires investment bankers to exercise a minimum duty of care in packaging and securitizing mortgage loans. The lion’s share of the credit goes to the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts, whose focus, knowledge and knack for dealmaking make him a rarity in the Capitol these days…

It’s possible to quibble with some of the details of the legislation…On the other hand, Frank, a Democrat, is to be commended for standing up to consumer and housing advocates who opposed federal preemption of state laws and regulations, which in some instances are more stringent than in the House legislation…

FRANK CALLS FOR "GRAND BARGAIN" ON THE ECONOMY

Wed, 27 Dec 2006 12:22:09 -0500

"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."

FRANK CORRECTS CAVUTO ON WAGE TRENDS

Sun, 24 Sep 2006 00:26:12 -0400

Media Matters for American, the media watchdog organization, reported on February 28, 2006 that in a discussion with Rep. Frank n February 21, Neil Cavuto of Fox News inaccurately claimed that real wages for American workers have increased. In fact, as Frank noted, real wages have declined in each of the past two years.

"On the February 21 edition of Fox News, Your World With Neil Cavuto, during a discussion with Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) on income disparity in the United States, host Neil Cavuto repeatedly stated, falsely, that real wages - wages adjusted for inflation - have increased for American workers. In fact, they have declined each of the last two years.

"Cavuto claimed real wages have risen '3.3 percent." Although it is not clear where Cavuto derived this figure, a January 31 Department of Labor release reported a real wage decline of 0.9 percent for private industry workers and a decline of 0.5 percent for state and local government workers during 2005.

TREASURY SECRETARY ADMITS IN RESPONSE TO FRANK QUESTION THAT WAGE DATA NOT ADJUSTED FOR INFLATION

Sun, 24 Sep 2006 00:22:32 -0400

New York Times, May 19, 2006 ("Coming Down to Earth" by Paul Krugman)

"On Wednesday, Treasury Secretary John Snow repeated that boast [that hourly earnings have risen 3.8 percent over the past 12 months] before a House Committee. However, Representative Barney Frank was ready. He asked whether the number was adjusted for inflation; after flailing about, Mr. Snow admitted, sheepishly, that it wasn,t. In fact, nearly all the wage increase was negated by higher prices."

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION LEGISLATION

Sun, 4 Jun 2006 23:20:23 -0400

Congressman Frank is the lead sponsor of The Protection Against Executive Compensation Abuse Act (H.R. 4291), which would require that stockholders of public companies be provided more information about senior management compensation packages, and require shareholder approval of executive compensation plans. The following are excerpts from recent media coverage of this issue.

Excerpt from May 24, 2006 Interview on Fox,s "Your World with Neil Cavuto"
Frank: "Well, I want to give the stockholders the right to make these decisions. I don,t think Congress or any element of the federal government ought to be setting the salaries.

But, we have this problem now where, frankly, the role of boards of directors as independent monitors has really failed us in a number of corporations. You have compensation consultants that get hired by the CEOs for the boards, and they get hired if they say they should get a lot of money.

What,s happening now is, CEO salaries and the salaries of a few top people have now risen to the point where they take away money that ought to be going to more productive purposes.

Excerpt from "When the Bounty Isn't Shared" by Congressman Frank, BusinessWeek, February 27, 2006

Sun, 4 Jun 2006 23:32:44 -0400

". . .Inequality is not a bad thing in a free market economy; indeed, it,s essential if we,re to benefit from the incentives and efficiencies that make the market so effective a producer of wealth. But left entirely to its own devices, the free market will produce more inequality than is necessary for efficiency or a healthy society. That,s especially true in an economy marked by globalization, the increased use of information technology, and the rapid flow of capital across borders. Alan Greenspan said as much when he told Congress, Joint Economic Committee in 2004 that nearly all the benefits of recent productivity growth were going to corporate profits, resulting in "a marked fall" in employees, share of the gains.

"Nothing in the past two years has alleviated that problem. Real wages for the average worker have eroded, and health and pension benefits have faded. Meanwhile, corporate profits and pay for the top 2% of the population have soared.

"For many of us, this is morally objectionable because it means that a large majority of people live at a lower standard of living than we think Americans ought to. But the counterargument, supported by many in Corporate America, is that focusing on inequality is a mistake, so long as the absolute level at which the majority lives is acceptable. So any reduction in inequality can only be won by a majority that includes people who do not share my values-based objections. . ."

Excerpt from "Democrat anger on Fed Chief Pension Backing" Financial Times, March 6, 2005

Wed, 10 Aug 2005 17:22:37 -0400

"While the Fed Chairman has shown little sign that ideology affects his monetary decisions, he is a very conservative figure and former adviser to Republican presidents. Barney Frank, Democratic congressman and one of Mr. Greenspan,s more thoughtful critics on the Hill, argues that the combination of Mr. Greenspan,s public role and personal beliefs can cause some problems.

The Federal Reserve chairman speaks first and foremost as head of the central bank, seeking to promote its policy goals.

But, says Mr. Frank, Mr. Greenspan sees it as his role to maintain good relations with the White House to protect the Fed,s independence and prevent political meddling. Third, he says, the Fed chairman "is a deeply and philosophically conservative guy".

Congressman Frank Says Reducing the Deficit Solely Through Program Cuts Will Worsen Economic Inequality

Fri, 29 Jul 2005 00:51:59 -0400

"If however we maintain the current situation in which we have a high priority on reducing the deficit and we continue in existence all of the tax cuts, then the inevitable consequence is very substantial reductions in public spending. With defense out of this loop, with homeland security out of this loop, all of the programs that either alleviate the consequences of inequality, or help us reduce this skill disparity in the future, are under the gun.

And so I fear-this is a question I would address to you-how do we, A, alleviate the effects of this inequality, so that you reduce the negative feelings that you correctly point out are a result; and how do we increase our ability to get these skills to people; how do we improve education; how do we improve on-the-job training?

Money is not the only answer. But no one, I think would say that you can do something of that magnitude in this society without additional resources. And the dilemma is, if you are going to deal with deficit reduction entirely through reductions in domestic public spending, at the state and local level and at the federal level, I think you have a situation in which the situation which you quite eloquently decry will get worse rather than better. And that is a subject I hope to pursue." Click Here for More Complete Excerpt from Remarks by Frank at February 17, 2005 Financial Service Committee Hearing Featuring Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan.

ABA Banking Journal / "Frank on Frank"

Mon, 29 Aug 2005 18:13:27 -0400

January 2004 - "Some members of Congress, especially senators, have mastered the art of courtly nonspeak - they sound wonderful, but when you parse their sentences, they've said nothing. Others sound so much like policy wonks that they almost seem to forget that the issues they're debating affect human lives. Then there are the faithful who spout the party line. Then there's Barney Frank."

The International Economy / "Greenspan on the Griddle"

Mon, 29 Aug 2005 18:14:45 -0400

Fall 2003 - "The Brain. A handful of lawmakers are worthy intellectual adversaries who earn Greenspan,s respect and, at times, even strike fear in him. They are smart, do their homework, and go brain-to-brain with him, perhaps none more effectively than Representative Barney Frank..."

David S. Broder Op-Ed: "One Bold Thinker Among the Democrats"

Mon, 8 Aug 2005 10:38:35 -0400

March 14, 2004 - "Frank carried the jobs debate to a level where the policy choices become so basic -- and challenging -- that ordinary pols and pundits fear to tread..."

Unemployment: A Serious Economic and Social Problem Facing the Country

Thu, 11 Aug 2005 10:47:05 -0400

March 4, 2004 - "I think it is a moral issue, a situation in which people receive millions, tens of millions of dollars in bonuses, a situation in which profits go higher and higher and the market is now doing well and we are all glad to see that, a situation in which the owners of capital find their wealth enhanced, but working people lose their health care, people are unemployed, children do not have adequate housing and other necessities. That is morally unacceptable to me."

--Barney Frank, from speech on House floor

Barney Frank in The International Economy magazine

Thu, 4 Aug 2005 12:32:52 -0400

Summer 2003 - "By paying for two wars with three tax cuts, the Bush administration has guaranteed large deficits for the foreseeable future…The movie that the conservatives are now producing - "How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Deficit" - ends like its predecessor with a huge explosion, but in this script, it is the notion that the public sector has an important role to play in improving the quality of our lives that gets blown up."