Barney Frank
Overview
Barney Frank is the U.S. Representative
for (1981–present). A member of the Democratic Party
, he is the former chairman of the House Financial Services Committee (2007–2011) and is considered the most prominent gay
politician in the United States.
Born and raised in New Jersey
, Frank graduated from Harvard College
and Harvard Law School
. He worked as a political aide before winning election to the Massachusetts House of Representatives
in 1972. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives
in 1980 with 52 percent of the vote.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
for (1981–present). A member of the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, he is the former chairman of the House Financial Services Committee (2007–2011) and is considered the most prominent gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
politician in the United States.
Born and raised in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, Frank graduated from Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
and Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
. He worked as a political aide before winning election to the Massachusetts House of Representatives
Massachusetts House of Representatives
The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from single-member electoral districts across the Commonwealth. Representatives serve two-year terms...
in 1972. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
in 1980 with 52 percent of the vote.
Quotations
I'm used to being in the minority. I'm a left-handed gay Jew. I've never felt, automatically, a member of any majority.
Interview with Claudia Dreifus in September and October 1995, published in Times Magazine (4 February 1996)
Moderate Republicans are reverse Harry Houdini|Houdinis. They tie themselves up in knots and then tell you they can't do anything because they're tied up in knots.
Quoted in Dionne, E. J., The Washington Post|The Washington Post, (16 November 2004)]
… [they] believe that life begins at conception and ends at birth…
Speaking of anti-abortion legislators
There are a lot of ways to mispronounce my name. That is the least common […] I checked with my mother. In 50 years no one's ever called her "Elsie Fag".
Responding to Dick Armey's referring to him as "Barney Fag", unidentified publication/date