Barney Frank On Bailouts, Welfare

But there are those who argue that reducing foreclosures would reward and encourage delinquencies. "You have the guy who's working three jobs so he can pay off his mortgage; you have a guy who's delinquent. He gets help, this other guy doesn't get help. So isn't there an unfairness…," Stahl points out.

"Yes, there is," Frank acknowledges.

"That you're setting up? And why shouldn't the guy over here who's been paying off his mortgage," Stahl asks. "Why doesn't he deliberately stop paying it."

"Let me give you another unfairness. I wanna see what you think about this. What about someone who's been working hard, 40 hours a week, maybe with some overtime, and goin' to work every day. And then his neighbor loses his job. The neighbor starts getting unemployment insurance. The neighbor who lost his job is getting money for nothing, from the government. There's some unfairness there," Frank argues.

Because of his support over the years of affordable housing for the poor, conservatives actually blame him for the whole sub-prime mortgage mess, saying he enabled Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to back riskier and riskier loans. Accusations he fends off, most famously in a screaming match with Bill O'Reilly.

Frank has been a target of criticism for years, and not just because he's a liberal.

"I'm gay, I'm left handed, I'm Jewish," he says. "There's a lot of things that I'm supposed to do that I don't do."

One thing he does do is get re-elected over and over as an openly gay man, though his district is in Massachusetts.

60 Minutes caught up in Fall River, Mass., where 60 Minutes met the congressman with his boyfriend, Jim Ready.

"It must have been really hard for a gay kid in high school in the '50s," Stahl remarks.

"Well, it was hard internally. It wasn't hard externally because I just never told anybody I was gay. I mean, not anybody. Not a single human being," Frank says.

He grew up in blue-collar Bayonne, N.J., a Jewish kid in a predominantly Catholic community, who was gay.

He says he realized he was gay when he was 13 years old. "And it was very depressing, very sad. And I was frightened about it. I just figured, okay, I will repress it. "

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[sadrake]

"Let me give you another unfairness. I wanna see what you think about this. What about someone who''s been working hard, 40 hours a week, maybe with some overtime, and goin'' to work every day. And then his neighbor loses his job. The neighbor starts getting unemployment insurance. The neighbor who lost his job is getting money for nothing, from the government. There''s some unfairness there," Frank argues.
Money for nothing?!?! What were all those payroll taxes I paid into the unemployment insurance system for over the last 35 years? By his reasoning, those drawing on social security must be deadbeats as well. And THIS is the smartest man in Congress? God help us all.

[karenteacup]

I was disappointed with this interview. Leslie had someone who played a major role in this country''s financial collapse, (in that he was sleeping on the job and he gained financially from his connections with Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac)....you could have held his feet to the fire, you could have held him accountable for his actions, yet you chose to talk about his sexual orientation?! What?! What a wasted opportunity.

[frj256]

Do you not realize that that Buffoon, Barney Frank, was one of those whose negligence brought about the bad loan crash? He not only did nothing to prevent the crash, but blocked regulation that would have prevented it. And he announced publically that one of the federally founded morgage firms was sound and got his "boy friend" a job at one of them. Why were these things not mentioned in the program? Do you not care about your reputation?

[seabuggg]

The next time you guys/gals interview a Democrat, I think it would be fitting to dress the interviewer in a short skirt and have Pom Poms. GET SERIOUS and ask some real questions and keep asking them until you get a answer! We are in trouble here. Brown nosing the guest who contributed to the problem does not help anyone!
PS luv the show Bruce in Georgia

[juicy327]

60 Minutes, in a previos life, was a fungible source of journalism. Leslie, your interview with Barney Franks was way beneath a novice. Why would any network waste primetime to pat a gay on the back that was so contributory to the fannie mae-freddie mac conspriracy. Just another arrow in the back of true patriots, thanks for helping kill AMERICA. In 1940 you would have been called a COMIE, gotta fill that time up with something, don''t you.

[earltim1]

Lesley, I viewed the Barney Franks interview (biography?). I noticed some displeasure on your part as to his demeaner, and the way he answered your questions. I would have much prefurred hearing the interview in more detail instead of the abbreviated Biographic presentation. I have worked in a field where there were gay men and Lesbian women. I have seldom met a gay adult who was without significant psychological issues, I would be surprised if Mr Frank was an exception. But even though you and your editors were apparently uncomfortable with Mr. Franks non-condiscending tone, I would like to hear from him ... NOT you. Perhaps the complete interview (without drama) could be aired sometime in the future. ( I was beginning to wonder who was behaving in the more inmature manner, Mr Frank .. or CBS ?)

[az1143t]

Barney Frank, as the Chairman of the House Banking Committee, is paid with our tax dollars to be our watch-dog in the areas of banking,housing and auto industry. While he is "wide awake" now, he has been "asleep at the switch" in not addressing and alerting us to the problems in these industries. In the private sector, he would be fired. In the public sector politicians never get removed, which is why government seldom gets better. You didn''t ask the tough questions. We just got his life story. You are our only watchdog to negligence and corruption. what we need is Jack Anderson style reporting with follow-up.

[dadabla]

" In the private sector, he would be fired."

But it was those in the "private sector," whether they were in the auto industry, banking, etc. that made, and continue to make, the big mis-management mistakes that Frank and many others bail out. They were not, and rarely are, fired. Rather, they resign with huge stock options etc. etc.

[dadabla]

" In the private sector, he would be fired."

But it was those in the "private sector," whether they were in the auto industry, banking, etc. that made, and continue to make, the big mis-management mistakes that Frank and many others bail out. They were not, and rarely are, fired. Rather, they resign with huge stock options etc. etc.

[guysdigdirt]

Who were the morons who put this self-important pig in office?

[sailon5]

what a joke! Leslie how about making this arrogant, bully answer your question about the people who took these irresponsible loans? You let him get away with comparing someone who looses his job through no fault of their own to an irresponsible borrower! This man encouraged these type of loans and no newsperson has the Ba*** to make him accountable. Thanks for NOT doing your job! You are a joke!

[dozer211]

this itrerview was a joke. hey lesley why is fannie and freddie not been investigated.how about his boyfriend whom he set up with a nice goverment job.how about harold raines walking away with over a 100 million dollars.