Frank Takes Pivotal Role

[question everything]

The Wall Street Journal

Frank Takes Pivotal Role
Congressman Bucks Partisan Currents, Gets Bills to Move
By DAMIAN PALETTA
December 10, 2007; Page A8

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Since January, Mr. Frank, 67 years old, has held more than 80 hearings and completed 40-odd bills, forcing bankers to keep an eye on Washington... Each of Mr. Frank's major legislative victories has followed a similar playbook: embrace an idea that resonates with the Democratic base; pick off one senior Republican to generate broad support; push the bill quickly through the House. Yet much of his work, including his committee's response to the housing crisis, is sitting idly in the Senate, where Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd (D., Conn.) has often been out of town pushing his underdog presidential effort.

Several Democrats on the House committee say Mr. Dodd is impeding Mr. Frank's goals. The congressman, who can often appear impatient, has only rarely let his frustration slip through. Asked recently about whether slow action by the Senate could allow retailers such as Home Depot Inc. to purchase banks -- a move he opposes -- Mr. Frank responded: "Well, why didn't they get to it earlier?" Mr. Frank has endorsed Hillary Clinton and will serve as an economic adviser to her campaign. Mr. Dodd defends his record, noting that almost all the roughly 20 bills his panel has approved have been by unanimous vote. "We've come out with a lot of careful work, fully recognizing that I'm dealing with the Senate here where most things are objected to," he said last week.

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Even before Mr. Frank became chairman, he forged an alliance with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to overhaul supervision of mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Mr. Frank agreed to increase the regulator's scope, and Treasury agreed to drop its demand for a limit on the companies' loan portfolios. Throughout the year, Mr. Frank and his staff held meetings with bankers, consumer groups and regulators to design a new regulatory platform that would redraw the way mortgages are offered, securitized and monitored, an issue that was a boil amid mortgage-market turmoil. As he prepared to introduce the bill later in the fall, the mortgage industry fumed, arguing that such a move would scare away investors and cut off credit to struggling borrowers. Mr. Frank sought sympathetic Republican colleagues who also worried about the quality of mortgage-lending oversight. After discussions with Rep. Spencer Bachus, the panel's ranking Republican, Mr. Frank tailored the bill to win Republican support, limiting liability for investors, for example.

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URL for this article:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119724461683018768.html (subscription)

[Lautremont]

1. Barnee Frank?

Barnee seems like a pretty smart guy.

[question everything]

2. Yes, he is

Here is an example of how we can prove that a Democratic Congress can achieve something..