1. Barney Frank A Commentary on the Financial Crises of 2008 By Cameron Shorey

2. Political Career Graduate of Harvard University in 1962 chief assistant in Kevin White’s campaign for Mayor of Boston in 1968 Won seat in Massachusetts State Legislature in 1972 Won seat in U.S. Congress in 1987

3. Committee of Financial Services 2002 – Frank was ranking minority member of committee in charge of monitoring the Federal Reserve and other financial entities including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

4. & As two chartered, government-sponsored enterprises (GSE), the original mission of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac was to make mortgages more affordable in the U.S. However, government backing gave Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac a monopoly on secondary mortgages and government implied a guarantee to keep the firms buoyant Many politicians and economists saw trouble looming in the current structure, but in 2003 Frank assured the world that the GSE’s were “fundamentally sound financially and withstand some of the disastrous scenarios”

5. Housing Bubble With support from congress, especially Barney Frank, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac among other large firms were able to increase in size and risk with their mortgages creating a housing bubble Frank supported home ownership and dismissed the claims that there was a housing bubble of any kind Audio quote (MSNBC): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-YtqVIKTTE&feature=related

6. But didn’t we just hear Frank say that it was his committee that would continue to push for housing? in 2010 Frank blames the Bush administration for the needed bailout of Fannie Mae by encouraging home ownership… Collapse Yes, we did. Interview with Larry King compared to speech on C-SPAN: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UZ9l_AxKjA&feature=related

7. It would appear as though Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were not so “fundamentally sound” as Frank had previously asserted.

8. Dodd-Frank In response to the “Great Recession,” the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act is being written in an effort to bring more regulation to the financial environment. Ironically, Barney Frank is one of the authors.

9. Can we trust Barney Frank? His failed responsibility to oversee Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac played a huge part in the financial crises He is hypocritical with his stance on economics Lastly, he divulges false information to the media

10. “I think it’s perfectly reasonable for people to be angry, but let’s be clear who put the fix in. The fix was put in by the federal government. If you want to put people in jail, I’ll second what [Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)] said. Start with Barney Frank and Chris Dodd and let’s look at the politicians who created the environment.” - Newt Gingrich Newt Gingrichs’ comment on Wall Street protesters and Barney Frank…

11. Bibliography http://blogs.reuters.com/financial-regulatory-forum/tag/barney-frank/ http://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2009/03/27/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-barney-frank http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barney_Frank http://www.whorunsgov.com/People/Congress/House_Committees/Financial_Services http://mlsmaps.com/mls-listings-info/index.php/government-exiting-mortgage-business-bye-bye-freddie-and-fannie/ http://www.issues2000.org/MA/Barney_Frank_Budget_+_Economy.htm http://www.investopedia.com/articles/economics/08/fannie-mae-freddie-mac-credit-crisis.asp#axzz1eOxv4m00 http://www.aboutmedicalbillingandcoding.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/home-business.png http://www.subprimemortgagedebacle.com/2011/01/21/fannie-mae-and-freddie-mac-would-disappear-in-proposed- bill/ http://www.freeclipartnow.com/toys/bubble.jpg.html http://blog.heartland.org/2011/09/barney-frank-attempts-to-stamp-out-dissent-within-the-federal-reserve/ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-YtqVIKTTE&feature=related http://www.holdempokerchat.com/tag/barney-frank/ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UZ9l_AxKjA&feature=related http://searchfinancialsecurity.techtarget.com/definition/Dodd-Frank-Act http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/10/11/gingrich-says-chris-dodd-and-barney-frank-should-be-jailed/