Frank's father ran a truck stop in Jersey City-a place Frank has described as "totally corrupt"-and when Frank was 6 or 7, his father served a year in prison for refusing to testify to a grand jury against Frank's uncle. His family was Jewish, and his grandparents had emigrated from Poland and Russia. Early life, education, and early careerįrank was born in Bayonne, New Jersey, one of four children of Elsie ( née Golush) and Samuel Frank. Prior to his time in the House of Representatives, Frank served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1973 to 1981. Frank's autobiography, A Life in Politics from the Great Society to Same-Sex Marriage, was published in 2015. Frank did not seek re-election in 2012, and was succeeded by fellow Democrat Joe Kennedy III. 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. 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 1987, he publicly came out as gay, becoming the first member of Congress to do so voluntarily. He was re-elected every term thereafter by wide margins. ![]() ![]() House of Representatives in 1980 with 52 percent of the vote. He worked as a political aide before winning election to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1972. īorn and raised in Bayonne, New Jersey, Frank graduated from Bayonne High School, Harvard College and Harvard Law School. Frank, a resident of Newton, Massachusetts, was considered the most prominent gay politician in the United States during his time in Congress. 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. House of Representatives from Massachusetts from 1981 to 2013. The congressman also made a name for himself while in office for championing sweeping financial reforms through his 2010 Dodd-Frank Act.Barnett Frank (born March 31, 1940) is a former American politician. ![]() The former congressman has been considered by many to be one of the most prominent openly gay politicians in the U.S.įrank became the nation's first openly gay congressman in 1987, and also became the first congress member to marry someone of the same sex while in office when he married his partner James Ready in 2012. Senate seat, although he was ultimately not chosen for the position. "I had asked my governor to appoint me to a vacant Senate seat and he decided not to - and I was looking forward to having my husband Jim hold the constitution, not the Bible, and affirm, not swear, that I was going to be a wonderful senator," Frank said.Īlthough Frank retired from Congress at the end of his term in January 2013, he did express interest for filling a U.S. "You could come on this show, and sit next to a pot smoking atheist, and it wouldn't bother you."įrank then responded: "Which pot-smoking atheist were you talking about?" pointing to himself and implying that both he and Maher are "pot smoking atheists." Frank's response received applause and laughter from the audience, and the former congressman went on to speak about his opinion regarding using the bible for oaths when swearing into a government office. "You were not one of those Congress-people who have to worry about every little thing," the comedian said. Frank represented Massachusetts's fourth congressional district, which is comprised of mostly southern Massachusetts. Maher then went on to say that Frank was lucky to have worked in a "safe district" which didn't receive the kind of media attention that other congressional districts may have. "I don't have to worry that when the phone rings it's somebody whose screwed something up and it's my responsibility to un-screw it," Frank told Maher in response to his question. ![]() Maher and Frank were discussing Frank's term as congressman on the Friday airing of HBO's "Real Time With Bill Maher" when Maher asked Frank if he feels more "liberated" since he retired from Congress after his term ended in January 2013. House of Representatives from Massachusetts from 1981 to 2013, made his comments last Friday while serving as a guest on a talk show hosted by Bill Maher, a stand-up comedian known for his atheist, liberal-slanted comedy routine. Frank, a Democrat who served as a member of the U.S.
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