Rep. Frank Says He Would Consider Senate Run
By Scott Brooks
WASHINGTON – Rep. Barney Frank, D-MA, said Thursday he would think “very seriously” about running for Sen. John Kerry’s U.S. Senate seat if the Massachusetts Democrat wins the presidency next year.
“If Kerry were to become president, I would think about it,” Rep. Frank said.
Rep. Frank, who has already endorsed Sen. Kerry’s bid for the White House, is the first Democrat in the state to express an interest in the seat. He disclosed his interest during an interview last week with Bay Windows, a Boston gay and lesbian newspaper.
Rep. Frank stressed that he was only answering the paper’s question “honestly” and that he is not making any concrete plans for a run. Even if Kerry won a presidential bid, the seat would probably not be available until 2006.
“It was nothing that I initiated. People asked me,” Rep. Frank said. “I’m not planning on it; I’m not working toward it. I’m not doing anything to get the story out.”
The congressman said this is the first time he has ever considered running for the Senate. The last opportunity, he noted, was in 1984, when then-Lt. Gov. Kerry ran successfully for the seat held by retiring Sen. Paul Tsongas.
“I had no interest in it at that time,” Rep. Frank said. “I had just been through two very exhausting House races. I never gave it another thought. We had two very excellent senators.”
However, Philip Johnston, chairman of the state Democratic Party, said he believes, based on private conversations with the congressman, that Rep. Frank has been interested in the Senate for “a period of time.”
“But I think it’s becoming more real now because of John Kerry’s presidential candidacy,” Mr. Johnston said. “In Massachusetts, we expect that John will be the nominee.”
In the event of a Kerry presidency, Rep. Frank said his decision may ultimately depend on the Democrats’ success in the 2004 elections. Since January, he has been the senior Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee. If the Democrats were to win back control of the House, which they have not held since 1994, Rep. Frank would become chairman of the committee.
“Being a newly selected chairman — that would be hard to give up,” he said. If, on the other hand, the Democrats are still in minority, he said, it “would make a lot of sense” for him to seek a Senate seat.
Rep. Frank has represented the New Bedford area in the U.S. House since 1980.
If Sen. Kerry were elected president, Gov. Mitt Romney, a Republican, would be in a position to appoint his successor, who would serve until November 2006. Kerry spokesman Tony Wyche said there has been no talk yet as to whether Sen. Kerry would give up his seat before the general election in November 2004.
In a statement, Sen. Kerry complimented Rep. Frank’s service in the House.
“He’s a remarkable public servant, and he’s done so much for Massachusetts and the nation,” Sen. Kerry said. “He’s smart as hell, he’s tenacious, he’s witty and he’s a fighter.
“Barney speaks his mind and argues his case better than just about anyone. Just ask Dick Armey,” he said, referring to the former House majority leader. Mr. Armey once caused a stir by referring to Rep. Frank, who is openly gay, as “Barney Fag.”
Mr. Johnston, who considers Rep. Frank an old friend, said the contest to succeed Sen. Kerry would probably be intense. However, he said, Rep. Frank would do well in any likely race. The congressman would bring with him a strong base of support, particularly among progressive Democrats and organized labor, he said.
“If he were to run, Barney being Barney, I think it would be a race that would attract national attention,” Mr. Johnston said.
Sen. Mark Montigny, who represents much of Rep. Frank’s district in the State House, said he was “not shocked” by Rep. Frank’s interest in the Senate and also predicted his chances of success would be high.
“I think he’s a formidable congressman, probably as strong as any sitting congressman down there,” he said. “It doesn’t surprise me that after a significant number of very successful terms in Congress that he would look at the U.S. Senate.”
Published in The New Bedford Standard Times, in Massachusetts.
