As Frank’s Campaign Contributions Increase, Profile of Top Donors Changes
FEC FRANK
The New Bedford Standard-Times
By Cristian Hernandez
Boston University Washington News Service
02/19/09
WASHINGTON – Rep. Barney Frank, who has represented the 4th District since 1981, went from raising less then half a million dollars in each of the six election cycles before 2004 to raising more than $2 million in 2008, according to data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics.
And the profile of Frank’s top donors has changed since he became the senior Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, with the bulk of his donations coming from the financial service sector.
In 2003 Frank became the senior Democrat and became chairman when the Democrats won back the House in 2006. In 2008, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a Washington-based group that tracks money in politics, the top industry to donate to Frank was the securities and investment sector, with $224,000; that was the most that industry donated to the congressman since he was elected. The industry that came in second was real estate, which donated $219,851.
The congressman said the influx of campaign contributions from the financial services and housing sectors did not come as a surprise and it was because “of the fact that I became the chairman of the committee, people felt it nice to curry favor with me.”
Frank said he raised more money because once he became a key Democratic leader the Democratic Party wanted him to contribute large sums of money to other Democratic House candidates.
“I was expected by the Democratic Party to contribute more,” Frank said.
Frank said he began to raise money in 2004 because he was interested in running for a seat in the Senate. The 2004 election was the first time he hired a campaign fundraiser when it looked like Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass, could become president. Frank said the Senate seat no longer appeals to him and he has zero interest in pursuing it in the future.
“Once I became chairman I dropped the idea of going to the Senate. I have a chance to influence and shape policy here,” Frank said. “It would be a big ego trip to give up my position now to go to the Senate.”
In 2004 Frank raised $1.3 million, breaking the million-dollar mark for the first time. Frank, who has had little opposition, had raised less then half a million in most races since first being elected in 1980, according to the Center for Responsive Politics’ Web site,opensecrets.org. In 2002 he raised $432,544.
Since becoming chairman of the Financial Services Committee Frank’s top donors all come from the financial sector, according to the Web site. The company whose employees donated the most in 2008 was the private bank and financial consulting firm Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. The company’s employees gave $36,200 to Frank’s campaign. In the two previous elections before he became chairman his top contributors came from labor unions.
A spokesman for Brown Brothers Harriman. said in a statement that the company does not have an organized political action committee and that the donations came from individual employees, but he said the company sponsored a fund-raiser for Frank during the campaign.
“Where the money is coming from makes sense,” said Doug Roscoe, associate professor of political science at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. “Committees is where the work actually happens in Congress. It’s natural for companies in the financial sector to spend money. They want to have access.”
Roscoe said that because the amount a political interest group can donate to a candidate is capped by federal regulation at $10,000 per election cycle, the possibility for corruption is reduced. But large donations will get access to politicians, Roscoe said.
Frank said that campaign donations have nothing to do with how he makes decisions in the committee. “I give access to whoever has business with the committee regardless of how much they donate,” he said. “If they don’t have any business with the committee then I probably won’t get to see them.”
Craig Holman, the Capitol Hill lobbyist for the nonprofit consumer advocacy organization Public Citizen, said that it is not uncommon for committee chairmen to see an increase in donations.
“Whoever is appointed chairman of a committee rakes in campaign cash galore–the Financial Services Committee in far greater number then other committees because they have money,” Holman said. “Executives know full well the importance that money carries in influencing decisions in Congress.
Some associations in the housing and financial services sectors have always supported Frank but stepped up their donations after 2006. The National Association of Realtors Political Action Committee went from donating $1,000 to $5,000 to the maximum contribution of $10,000 in 2008.
“We have always supported him because he is a very good public servant who understands the private sector. We want to work with public officials who understand the issues,” said Scott Reiter, managing director of the Realtors’ political action committee.
Reiter said Realtors understand Frank is in a position to influence policy. He said the association supported the recently enacted economic stimulus package and the banking rescue legislation that Frank closely engineered.
“The financial services sector is throwing a lot of money at Barney in particular,” Holman said. “They seem to think that they can buy a seat at the table as these bailout policies are taking shape.
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