Rep. Barney Frank, Massachusetts Democrat, suddenly wants his constituents to know he cares what they think.There are lots of Democrats who deserve to lose (in fact, they all do), but Frank would surely be at the top of the list thanks to his malfeasance in office. However, he has lived the blessed life of a Massachusetts Democrat, which until Scott Brown came along and won Teddy Kennedy's old seat, was a life without serious political challenges for his job. For at least this one election cycle Frank can't take his seat for granted. The days of being able to run a male prostitution ring out of his apartment and get away with only an ethics slap on the hand are over.
Facing a credible Republican challenger for the first time in many, many in former Marine Sean Bielat, Frank has been toning down his famous acerbic wit and asking for input from his constituents.
“Thanks for visiting my web page,” he says in a video, “the nice thing about the web is, it’s interactive. So if there’s any of these issues where you’d like to respond, or even have me respond to your response, please feel free to do so,” he says sincerely.
This from the man whose idea of “interactive” was to ask one of his constituents, “you said you’re worried about the deficit. Then you said you want to talk about the war. Who do you think paid for the war, Santa Claus?”
That memorable line came from a town hall in August 2009, when grassroots outcry over the president’s health care law was perhaps at its peak.
Facing a boisterous crowd that day, Frank relied on condescension for crowd control. “I’m just curious,” he said to one voter, “Do you really think that’s thoughtful conversation? Do you really think that advances your argument?”
“What’s the matter with you all?”
If Frank is knocked out we'll know just how deep the voter revulsion toward Democrats has become.
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