Barney Frank Knocked on His Fannie

[marshabar1]

Just eewwww. . .

U.S. Rep. Barney Frank admitted he helped his ex-lover land a lucrative post with Fannie Mae in the early 1990s while the Newton Democrat was on a committee that regulated the lending giant — but he called questions of a potential ethical conflict “nonsense.”“If it is (a conflict of interest), then much of Washington is involved (in conflicts),” Frank told the Herald last night. “It is a common thing in Washington for members of Congress to have spouses work for the federal government. There is no rule against it at all.”

Frank said he helped his former longtime companion, Herb Moses, land a job at Fannie Mae in 1991 after Moses graduated with a master’s degree in business administration from Dartmouth College. Frank said he was approached by a Fannie Mae executive and vouched for Moses, who formerly worked as an economist in the Department of Agriculture.

“(The executive) said, ‘Herb applied for a job,’ and I said, ‘Yeah, I think he’d be great. He’s an economist and he’s got an MBA,’ ” Frank said, recounting the conversation. “He was hired to an entry-level position.”

Asked if he should have disclosed his efforts to help Moses land the job at Fannie Mae, Frank said: “It was widely known. It was out there in the public. It’s nonsense.”

Congressional Republicans pounced on the embarrassing revelation.

“Just when you think you’ve heard the worst, Democrats in Massachusetts take shameless politics to a new low,” said Tory Mazzola, spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee. “The fact that Barney Frank didn’t see this as a conflict of interest is alarming by itself, but it’s so deceitful that it really shows voters that he’s not looking out for them in Washington.”

bostonherald.com/news/politics/view.bg?articleid=1340643

[chiver78]

at the risk of sounding like a recently-banned poster,

YAWN!

seriously, this is not news. and he's right, it happens all over Washington. it happens all over the place, people will vouch for friends and family when they probably are stretching it a bit. it doesn't make it right, but it doesn't mean that it's a huge major thing that needs to be beat to death, which is what the article in the OP is trying to do.



and what's so to you? just curious...

[swamp]

People who are in power like to help their loved ones get jobs. So what?

[wyouser]

appears to be a perpetual pitfall for lifetime politicians....."this cant apply to me" I like his comment "if it is, then much of Washington is involved" Hmmm...another case of "power corrupts"? Someday perhaps we will seriously look at this issue of longtime or lifetime holders of public office.

[Deleted]

Not surprising at all. Just look at the disaster it has been having Obama appoint and hire his friends. One mess after another. Sure it happens at all levels of life, but in Washington it can have real consequences.

[hello fromWarsaw]

What mess, outside of the Pub Pundit BS Propaganda machine?

[NoNamePerson]

Geeze, my mother was dating a guy on the Personnel Board and he helped me get a summer job with the State. He told me to take the first State exam that came up. I took Engineering Assistant I test. I was 16 and didn't know diddly about engineering. This was back in the dark ages so nothing is new about this

[bean29]

I see no problem with this. It sounds like his ex was actually qualified for the job so it seems much ado about nothing.

Now, if he had been blatantly unqualified it would be a diff story but he had a masters in business amin.

[Mkitty is pro kitty]

Oh gosh, oh golly gee, it happens on both sides:

"Scott Walker Pays $81.5K Gov’t Salary to Drunk-Driving Loser Son of Crony"
wonkette.com/442147/scott-walker-pays-81-5k-govt-salary-to-drunk-driving-loser-son-of-crony

Oh yeah, and the kid, a lobbyist's son, was a college drop out with 2 DUIs and is unqualified for the job.