Congressman Barney Frank is retiring at the end of this term. Here's what President Obama has to say about his legacy:
"This country has never had a Congressman like Barney Frank, and the House of Representatives will not be the same without him. For over 30 years, Barney has been a fierce advocate for the people of Massachusetts and Americans everywhere who needed a voice. He has worked tirelessly on behalf of families and businesses and helped make housing more affordable. He has stood up for the rights of LGBT Americans and fought to end discrimination against them. And it is only thanks to his leadership that we were able to pass the most sweeping financial reform in history designed to protect consumers and prevent the kind of excessive risk-taking that led to the financial crisis from ever happening again. Barney’s passion and his quick wit will be missed in the halls of Congress, and Michelle and I join the people of the Bay State in thanking him for his years of service."
Frank is a founding member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, an entity with which the President closely works on critical legislation. That's not surprising, for reasons of both pragmatism and principle, considering the progressives are the largest Congressional caucus and the President defines himself as "a strong progressive."
Frank's colleague Mazie Hirono is running for U.S. Senate in Hawai'i. Frank has been stumping for Hirono - which has prompted Hirono's opponents to launch desperate broadside attacks. Please follow me below for the details.
Think of the most radically right-wing Members of Congress. Those who want to eliminate Planned Parenthood, the EPA, and the Department of Education. Those who dispute that President Obama is American and kowtow to Rush Limbaugh.
Former Congressman Ed Case - who was a member of the conservative Blue Dog Coalition - is running against Hirono in the Democratic primary. He says Frank and Hirono are just as bad as anyone in that group:
"[Frank's] and Mazie's extreme-left fiscal and economic policies and endless partisan warfare are no more the solution for our country than the far right's."
Of course, the "policies" backed by Frank and Hirono include many of President Obama's signature first-term achievements, including the Affordable Care Act, the Dodd-Frank Act, and the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell.
Case's attack was preceded by Republican criticisms of Frank's visit to Hawai'i - and led to further attacks.
The leading Republican candidate in the race is Linda Lingle. Her camp pounced on Case's quote and issued a press release castigating progressive Democrats like Frank, Hirono, and Obama, accusing them (without explanation) of trying to "hurt the average American."
There's much irony and inaccuracy in the Case-Lingle line of attack. Frank has worked closely with many Republicans, including Senator Susan Collins - who also recently visited Hawai'i. Frank and Collins each sponsored the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in their respective chambers. Hirono has been tirelessly promoting the VISIT USA Act, which she introduced with GOP Congressman David Dreier.
Most objective observers would say that type of collaboration shows pragmatism and willingness to find common ground with others - without sacrificing principle.
Meanwhile, Case continues to relish being at odds with those in his party. He was the only Democrat to vote for the Hensarling Amendment in 2005 - a budget proposal so extreme that even a majority of Republicans (including Tom DeLay and Henry Hyde) voted no. With Senators Ben Nelson and Joe Lieberman retiring, it's hard to envision Case finding like-minded colleagues to work with. In the meantime, intentionally or not, he's supporting Lingle's campaign messaging. (It's sort of like old times, as Case and Lingle joined together to support the Iraq War and tax cuts for the 1% during the Bush years.)
With Case, Lingle, and, likely soon, Karl Rove teaming up against Hirono, she needs help:
http://mazieforhawaii.com/
Mahalo.