Barney Frank hammers LGBT Republican group for endorsing Romney

By Eric W. Dolan/Raw Story

Frank has been engaged in an ongoing feud with the pro-LGBT Republican group, after he said their “role model is Uncle Tom” last month. The Log Cabin Republicans responded by saying Frank was trying to “divide, distract and deceive the American people.” The group said it was “a badge of honor” to be attacked by Frank, who they described as a “partisan hack” and the Democratic Party’s “attack dog.”

In a “Mitt Gets Worse” video released Tuesday, Democratic Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts blasted the Log Cabin Republicans for endorsing Republican candidate Mitt Romney for president.

“It makes no sense to argue, as some in Log Cabin do, that they will be advancing LGBT rights by voting or supporting Romney,” the openly-gay congressman said. “We have never in American history had a sharper distinction between a very supportive candidate and one that’s very, very opposed.”

The Courage Campaign and the super PAC American Bridge 21st Century joined forces toproduce the “Mitt Gets Worse” campaign. The multimedia initiative seeks to warn LGBT Americans about the dangers a Romney administration could pose for them and their families.

“I can understand them saying other issues are more important,” Frank added. “Don’t tell me that you are helping LGBT rights.”

The Log Cabin Republicans endorsed Romney for president on Tuesday, saying “we believe Governor Romney will make cutting spending and job creation his priorities, and, as his record as Governor of Massachusetts suggests, will not waste his precious time in office with legislative attacks on LGBT Americans.”

Watch video, uploaded to YouTube, below:

Barney Frank slams Republicans: They’re going to get repudiated

By Eric W. Dolan/Raw Story

Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) on Thursday blasted the Republican Party, which he claimed had become so partisan that it was unwilling to work with Democrats.

“American politics has always had two factions, one that wanted slightly more government and one that wanted slightly less government, each side understood the legitimacy of the other,” he said. “There are no Democrats who don’t believe in a free enterprise system as a generator of wealth and goods and services.”

But after the 2010 elections, when a wave a tea party Republicans were elected to Congress, that was no longer the case.

Not since the Civil War has there been a faction of a political party that took over a political party so far from the center,” said Frank. “And I think they’re going to get repudiated. You know, in 2010 they won because people were mad at us. But now people are looking at what they are saying and I don’t think people are ready for this.”

Watch video, courtesy of MSNBC, below:

Barney Frank: ‘There are worse things than default’

By David Edwards/Raw Story

The top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee reacted with outrage Friday to reports that a deal to raise the debt ceiling might include deep cuts to entitlements and only a promise of future tax reforms.

“We’re told if nothing’s done by 2013, there would be a trade off between the Bush tax cuts and the individual mandate on health care,” MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell told Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA).

“I can’t think of worse public policy,” Frank said. “To put people for example in uncertainty about what health care is going to look like in 2013, is a bad joke.”

“But I want to talk about entitlement cuts. I really am offended by this notion that there should be a tradeoff between some of these things and whether or not a 78-year-old woman living on $19,000 a year ought to have further restrictions on her income. I don’t know where this notion came from that the cost of living adjustment for Social Security is too lavish.”

He continued: “I’m especially troubled, the Obama administration is talking about keeping troops in Iraq beyond the time that George Bush said they should stay out at the cost of billions of dollars. I hope that’s not true. And it certainly invalidates any notion that you make the sacrifice elsewhere.”

“What do you say to the president?” Mitchell asked. “Is it better to default? You know, you’re the ranking member of Financial Services. You know what’s at risk here with the ratings services and everybody else that have now gotten into this situation… Is he going to lose the Democratic caucus?”

“Yes,” Frank predicted. “I’ve already voted to raise the debt limit. I voted to raise it earlier this year straight forward. And by the way, it’s not my debt limit. I voted against the war in Iraq and I voted against the Bush tax cuts. On my debt limit, I got a couple trillion left to go. I was very generous. I voted to raise the other people’s debt.”

“I don’t think the president should allow the irresponsibility of the right wing to say, ‘We’re going to shoot you if you don’t do this.’ No, I don’t want there to be a default but there are worse things than default. And worse things than default are wrenching the American government out of shape, losing the principle of majority rule that’s been such and important gift from America to the rest of the world, inflicting pain on the most vulnerable people in our society, continuing to spend hundreds of billions of dollars to subsidize military budgets all over the world and cut back on people here.”

Watch this video from MSNBC’s Andrea Mitch Reports, broadcast July 22, 2011.

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Tea Party protesters reportedly spit on one lawmaker, call others ‘faggot’ and the n-word.

By Amanda Terkel

Today’s Code Red rally appears to be one of the most raucous Tea Party gatherings on Capitol Hill yet. In addition to protesters shouting with rage at federal lawmakers, Sam Stein reports on some more disturbing incidents:

A staffer for Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) told reporters that Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-M.D.) had been spit on by a protestor. Rep. John Lewis (D-G.A.), a hero of the civil rights movement, was called a ‘ni–er.’ And Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) was called a “faggot,” as protestors shouted at him with deliberately lisp-y screams. Frank, approached in the halls after the president’s speech, shrugged off the incident.

But Clyburn was downright incredulous, saying he had not witnessed such treatment since he was leading civil rights protests in South Carolina in the 1960s.

“I heard people saying things that I have not heard since March 15, 1960 when I was marching to try and get off the back of the bus,” [said Clyburn.]

Clyburn added, “I think a lot of those people today demonstrated that this is not about health care…it is about trying to extend a basic fundamental right to people who are less powerful.” TPM, Mother Jones, and The Hill have reports of similar behavior by the Tea Party protesters.

Update On Twitter, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) wrote that he was "grateful for the thousands of patriots who are storming the Capitol today protesting government healthcare and defending freedom." M.C.L comment: Odd how things turned protest one president Jim DeMint would probably accuse you of hiding terrorists in your basement, scream racist and homophobic slurs, spit and threaten to do violence towards another president and members of that president party and Jim DeMint would call you an American hero.. What Jimmy DeMint doesn't know those protesters from the short bus that Freedom Works brought in already vote Republican, you're not expanding your base Jimmy those couple of thousand or so old racist right wing crap stains protesters are your voting base. But here's the bright side sane, honest,fair and reasonable people are seeing who the Republicans are trying to latch up with. The tea bag protest has shown health care is not the issue, hating the brown skin guy with a funny name in the white house is.