Barney Frank Calls Newt Gingrich A 'Lobbyist And Liar'

Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) sharply criticized former speaker of the House and Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich Wednesday, following comments Gingrich made in October suggesting the House member should be in jail for the economic crisis.

"He's a man with no ethical core whatsoever," Frank told the Boston Globe.

"There are a number of conservatives whom I respect. ... Newt's just never had any principles, so no I'm not surprised about this at all," he said, referring to a report that Gingrich earned between $1.6 million and $1.8 million in consulting work for Freddie Mac.

A Gingrich spokesman confirmed to The Huffington Post that Freddie Mac paid roughly $30,000 per month for his "strategic advice," but said the money went to Gingrich's consulting firm, The Gingrich Group. Gingrich has denied that he was ever a lobbyist, but former Freddie Mac officials said his role was to build bridges between the company and Republicans on Capitol Hill.

Frank also criticized Gingrich Wednesday to MSNBC's Martin Bashir. "You talk about the 'L' word with Newt. Let's be clear the two words apply to Newt: lobbyist and liar." He added, "He was clearly there as a lobbyist. You don't enhance your academic credentials by having been speaker. What you enhance is your value as a lobbyist."

Gingrich later criticized Frank on the Laura Ingraham show over the collapse of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. "I wasn't speaker at the time, but Barney Frank was in Congress."

Frank has admitted that he was late in seeing the insolvency problems with Freddie Mac and its sister company, Fannie Mae, but also added that Republicans controlled the House between 1995 and 2006 (with Gingrich as speaker between 1995 and 1999) and, in his view, did not do anything.

Gingrich suggested Frank and former Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), the two top Democrats behind Wall Street reform legislation, should be in jail for missing the financial crisis in an Oct. 11 debate. Frank responded at the time, "It's interesting ... this notion we caused the problem that started while they were in charge even by Gingrich's standards is very odd."

Comments

[olerealist]

11:45 PM on 11/30/2011

POINT AND COUNTER POINT:
Gingrich: “Frank should be in jail” (regarding his positions on F. Mac.
Frank: “"He was clearly there as a lobbyist. You don't enhance your academic credentials by having been speaker. What you enhance is your value as a lobbyist." (sic for F. Mac)

http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20111116/OPINION/111160349/-1/NEWSMAP

Efforts by such as Mit Romney and Gingtrich to blame BARNEY FRANK or Chris Dodd for the 2007-8 mortgage finance crisis defy the facts.

Their records can only be assessed fairly for the period in which Democrats were in the majority and they held the chairmanships of the House and Senate committees overseeing the financial services industry.

In that period, Democrats passed a law to increase regulation of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac; the law has been praised by experts across the political spectrum. Frank passed in the House a bill that would RESTRICT predatory lending — the language was later incorporated into a larger bill and signed into law.

It is a well-established fact that it was the Bush administration that increased demands on Fannie and Freddie in 2004 as part of its "Ownership Society." BARNEY FRANK OPPOSED this action, saying that it would be bad both for Fannie Mae and for borrowers who could end up with loans they could never pay back.

Rep. Frank never, in fact, advocated the lowering of the usual underwriting standards of F.MAE AND F. MAC..

[Donn Hunter]

11:11 AM on 11/28/2011

When one considers the number of bankruptcies caused by subprime lending and the collapse in the housing market, because of two Congressmen standing in front of the repective financial committees shouting we must make home ownership much easier to obtaind over the objections of their republican members, it is sickening to see the country nearly if not completely bankrupt today with uncontroled government spending.

[smiththomas]

08:52 AM on 11/23/2011

At least, as far as we know associate with terrorists and raise preachers that say GD. America

[Dave Byrne]

07:17 AM on 11/23/2011

Barney Frank is like the Andy Griffith Show,

[njterry7]

07:15 AM on 11/20/2011

braney frank what a ----sucker

[Nikita007]

10:10 AM on 11/19/2011

The elitist lib MSM is so predictable.

Newt is surging in the polls - now it's his turn to face the witch-hunt.

Barney Frank - what a joke! This man is a walking clown.

[Biochemist she]

02:06 AM on 11/20/2011

And yet he never left his cancer-stricken wife on her de@th bed to f^cj the shRt out of another woman, whilst leading an inquest into the private life of Bill Clinton, and bloviating about the "sanctity" opposite marriage.

You're a joke, much like your idol, Newt.

Dude has about as much chance of seeing the inside of the oval office as Rick Santorum.

[Patt Reid]

11:12 AM on 11/20/2011

Why would anyone run for President if they have skeletons in their closet? Only the most arrogant think that they can hide from there own history. I have no pity for anyone who runs. It's not a witch hunt, it's called "vetting". If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.

[Lark817]

12:21 PM on 11/22/2011

Thank you for saying much more politely what I was thinking of saying.

[Jerry Callaio]

01:01 AM on 11/19/2011

Barney Frank is not only correct but more of a man than Newt Gingrich will ever be, because Frank will admit when he is wrong. It appears most Republicans are incapable of admitting when they are wrong about anything.

Like Gingrich attacking Clinton about having an affair; while Newt himself was having his own affair at the exact same time.

Can you spell HYPOCRISY!!!!!

[gattic619]

08:39 PM on 11/18/2011

NEWT IS THE SLIMIEST MEMBER OF THE GOP.......MORALLY---DIVORICING HIS WIFE WHILE DYING OF BREAST CANCER......MIGHT BE THE WORST THING IN HIS SPIRITUAL BEHAVIOR..........BUY USING HIS POSITION TO MAKE OVER 1.6MILLION FOR SUPOSEDLY GIVING ADVICE......TO THE ORGANIZATION THAT MADE SO MANY PEOPLE LOOSE THIER HOMES...AND GO INTO BANKRUPCY....YES...BARNEY FRANK IS RIGHT...THIS PIECE OF KAKA SHOULD BE IN JAIL.........IF NOT EXECUTED FOR TREASON.

[Jim Prater]

08:08 PM on 11/18/2011

Like Barny Franks has a right to talk after he reported in a senate hearing before the crash, that freddie mac and fannie mae were financially sound. YEAH, RIGHT !

[njterry7]

07:07 AM on 11/20/2011

There might be a jail cell waiting for barney frank, oh wait a minute he might like that!

[Philclock]

06:50 PM on 11/20/2011

Censors prevent me from posting my comments on the despicable Barney Frank, and what he did to crony up to FNMA's criminal lending practices; so I will simply comment on YOUR comment, WELL SAID!!

[hatenomor]

06:45 PM on 11/18/2011

Well, Newt, looks like you've lost old Barnie's vote. Oh, well.

[Biochemist she]

02:08 AM on 11/20/2011

You;re right; seeing as how Newt is never going to advance past this hot mess of a primary battle--much less see the inside of the oval office--your point is moot.

Oh well!

[hatenomor]

10:24 AM on 11/20/2011

All because old barnie won't vote for him. Maybe we can change barnies mind. That way, Newt and Obama will get to debate and we can expose Obama for the empty suit he is.
You do know that Obama will have to throw ol barn under the bus if he is to get re-elected. So, maybe barnie needs to make a pre-emptive strike and throw his support to someone who has a clue, like Newt, or even Hillary, assuming hell freezes over first.

[Albert Meyer]

02:44 PM on 11/18/2011

There was a stoutly old man named Newt
Who had thought of himself ever so cute
Consumed by greed and by graft
That made him look ever so daft
Has finally been caught holding the loot

-----

Sorry, Ron Paul is not part of the GOP establishment. Anti-war, anti-torture, anti-assassination squads, anti-drug war, pro our civil liberties and a man of true integrity.

[aresponse2dotcom]

02:09 PM on 11/18/2011

Frank accusing anyone of "not having any ethical core" is an absolute joke. This is a guy that continues in his positions when he should have been booted out on his donkey

[nabsentia23]

03:43 PM on 11/18/2011

Maybe, but when that person is Gingrich, it's justified.

[morganthepirate]

02:04 PM on 11/18/2011

Looks more like Fred Flintstone.........

[NC2]

01:45 PM on 11/18/2011

The Democrats took over congress was January 3rd 2007, the day the Democrats took over the House of Representatives and the Senate, the start of the 110th Congress. The Democratic Party controlled a majority in both chambers for the first time since the end of the 103rd Congress in 1995.
At the time the DOW Jones closed at 12,621.77
The GDP for the previous quarter was 3.5%
The Unemployment rate was 4.6%
George Bush's policies set a record of 52 straight months of jobs creation.
January 3rd, 2007 was the day that Barney Frank took over the House Financial Services Committee and Chris Dodd took over the Senate Banking Committee. The economic meltdown that happened 15 months later was in what part of the economy? When did mortgages suddenly go underwater? When was the term toxic mortgage invented? Why has the equity in my house suddenly vanished? Why has my 401K 30% less than it was before Barney and his democrats took over? Why have skilled jobs for the middle class disappeared offshore? May take more than the media to figure out the reasons but it sure doesn't take a rocket scientist. And Barney is throwing stones at who? Barney is the least credible person in the nation.

[nabsentia23]

03:45 PM on 11/18/2011

Here we go again. You guys just don't stop? You can continue to spin this all you want, but most of the country blames Bush more for our economic woes.

And honestly, Bush's job creation record was dismal. Under his administration, he created fewer jobs than his father or Reagan.

[hatenomor]

06:48 PM on 11/18/2011

No, the left blames Bush for this mess. And FYI: the president doesn't create jobs.
Another FYI: Jobs were plentiful under most of the Bush administration. FYI: they remained plentiful until the dems took over congress.

[Jim Prater]

08:15 PM on 11/18/2011

Things went to hell in a hand basket for those of that dont remember, that after 9-11, everything went down, stocks, jobs etc,. The market was scared to invest, no one was hiring and bush did an excellent job in encouraging business to keep on running. Obamas job creation is inciteful and full of degradation and outright number voodooing. If you add the ones that fell off the unemployment rolls, the number is WAY higher. I know, been there and know many more still out of work. Ask Obama why he still allows companies to move overseas, look at pelosi's net worth and reids net worth. both were near broke until they took office. Not saying repubs any better, just saying the majority of the crooks today in office are democrats.

[roger37]

06:44 PM on 11/18/2011

This post is what happens when you push the Republican "shtup" button. The fact that the economic meltdown happened under George W Bushleague and the Bank Bailout happened under his Secretary of the Treasury is totally ignored. So the Repubs try to shtup anybody that's around.

[renk175]

01:40 PM on 11/18/2011

I wonder which Republican Barney would like to do?

[aresponse2dotcom]

02:10 PM on 11/18/2011

C'mon Renk don't stoop the the level of the average Huffer Lemming.

[graceaustin]

02:55 PM on 11/18/2011

Jealous?