O'Reilly vs. Barney Frank: Knockdown

Can you imagine the outcry if a reporter had yelled at Palin like that? Her supporters are in a fury because reporters have the nerve to ask her questions, and those same people probaly cheer O'reilly for his little temper tantrum.

I was flipping throughthe channels when i saw this exchange last night. My dogs went to the other room. This was way over the top. http://www.boppoll.com
i think people should boycott this guy!

Can you imagine the outcry if a reporter had yelled at Palin like that? Her supporters are in a fury because reporters have the nerve to ask her questions, and those same people probaly cheer O'reilly for his little temper tantrum.

You go O'reilly! It's about time someone got on his Barney Frank's case.

O'reilly wins by a knockout!

Barney was spitting all over the place, it was great!

Sleep deprivation does very strange things to people, even to politicians.
They revert to type, to the lowest common denominator, to buzz phrases.
Drier is babbling today about how awwwfulllll it is to see the Dow go down because the House won't wag its tail and get up on its hind legs & beg.
Drier, you get more pompous with each passing year.
Everyone knows the stock market is "rigged" in the sense that it is controlled largely by about 100 fund managers who live in or just outside Manhattan.
They can push buttons and make it go up or down like an elevator.
Your fellow wind bag Gingrey, with his Foghorn Leghorn delivery, is telling us "something must be done".

The Democratic leadership has blown it big time. This could have been the biggest corporate reform statute since the Securities Act of 1933.
Instead it turned into a pathetic artificial Xmas tree.
192 Million for Rum. 2 million for wooden arrows.
McCain is voting for this???

Well, obviously Paulson is conflicted and should be disqualfied from everything to do with "rescuing" Wall St because he's bailing himself out.

You know it is a rotten bill when it gives him any power to, essentially, help himself.

"Crisis of confidence" won't be overcome by a transparant giveaway whose imprudence is apparant to all.

Some member of House seem to forget that even the basic New Deal legislation took:

100 DAYS.

Not 100 hours.

And that, when Inauguration Day was in March, not January.

and they wonder why people won't go on Faux News. An interview? What a joke.

o'reilly is the stupidest tv personality i have ever come across. the guy is really dumb.

LOL. Yes you two idiots who posted before me, protect the guy who had the biggest hand in the economic downfall of this country of late. Barney Frank (who is an intelligent guy) got B-Slapped all over the stage by O'Reilly and why did it happen? Because O'reilly is correct. Frank should step down or at least take some of the blame instead of trying to push it all on conservatives.

P.S. This had nothing to do with Palin...She has only done positive things in office, unlike Frank who is either incompetent or corrupt.

Nice Job Bill in exposing this man.

"You're the brilliant guy. I'm the dumb guy.''

Finally O'Reilly got something right!

i think O'REILLY said what a lot of us middle class citizens are thinking. this guy is one of the biggest crooks! O'reilly should have asked him how
much money he and his cronies made off the hard working American people. including pushing for low income housing for 10 years - then when the train was rolling down the hill he tried to stop it with concern. give me a break! Frank,Dodd,Johnson and Rangel,Raines are why we are in this mess. oh don't let me forget about Obama receiving money as well from Freddie and Fannie.

Re Liz comments: Admittedly, O'Reilly was quite emotional but given the facts it's understandable. Palin has been unfairly attacked simply because liberals are afraid of what she represents. Frank, however, through mismanagement and deliberate efforts to dissuade regulation has cost the American taxpayer upwards of a TRILLION dollars. He deserves the ire of every American...not just Bill O'Reilly. I hope the people of his district will see the facts and save the country from further incompetence.

Since when is Bill O'Reilly's program called a "news" program? Its at best a hour of him screaming down those who don't agree with him and being intolerant, rude and a tv version of Rush Limbaugh.

Its great that a Fox "news" seems to forget the many, many years that the republicans deregulated banking and the mortgage industries and really caused this mess.

Mr. Oreilly, thank you so much for your attack on Barney Frank. I would love to see you go after the others who were involved. We are sick and tired of the crooks in our government. I love your show and I'm still smiling about your interview.

Bill O'Reilly does NOT listen to people. He yells over them. Where is intelligent discourse and give and take? Bill's show is on the level of Janice Dickinson's reality tv show. Maybe "The Nanny" should come and teach somebody some manners.

As an independent, I've been watching O'Reilly steadily the past few weeks to get his take on things. No longer - that "interview" last night was ridiculous and way over the top. O'Reilly had Frank on for one reason - to lecture him into apologizing to the American people. When he didn't do that, he just berated Frank and then ended the discussion. Frank seemed truly interested in having a rational discussion and O'Reilly would have none of it. I will not watch him again.

O'Reilly the idiot; his millionaire's portfolio is dropping big time this week, so he has to take it out on Barney; can't believe people actually watch his show.

one of the comments in regards to the interview with barney states OH! what if someone tried this to sarah palin everyone would be in a up roar ! problem with that is SHE'S NOT CORRUPT and not affiliated with the what democrats and others are claiming is the end of the financial world! thats a pretty BIG SCREW UP don't you think! Barney deserved every bit of that and more!

Posted by: Doug | October 3, 2008 10:10 AM

So Republicans should be treated with kid gloves, bt Democrats deserve to be browbeaten and screamed at. Asking Republicans straight forward questions is treating them unfairly, shouting at Democrats is deserved.

Fair and balanced. Right.

Unfortunately O'Reilly went over the top on this one because he is so upset with Frank who definitely has a large share of the responsibility for this mess on his head and will not admit it. O'Reilly should have played some of the tapes where Frank belittled bankers during congressional banking hearings in 2001. The bankers were complaining Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac where making bad loans and regular banks could not compete with them. Frank told the bankers tough. Don't complain to me. Make the same loans or go out of business. Frank knew about this back in 2001 and did nothing. For that he should resign. He had a chance in his position to make a difference and he made it worse. It's too bad O'Reilly came off bad in the interview because he is really correct in asking for Frank's head.

Has O'Reilly apologized yet for calling US soldiers war criminals at Malmady? Didn't think so. This guy never admits his mistakes. He thinks its more important to be loud and wrong.

Way to go Bill! It's about time someone called him out. I've been waiting for this for many years.

What those of you who don't like O'Reilly seem to miss is that those who go on the show have to answer questions. No softballs. No PC nonsense. O'Reilly is simply mirroring what a lot of viewers are feeling about this mess.

It's called accountability. Unfortunately on both sides of the aisle it's sorely lacking in today's America.

Newton should drop Frank like the loser he is, Fannie and Freddies collapse is on his head.

Now I beseech you, good Americans;
Which interview was fair and balanced?
1. Couric vs Palin
2. O 'Reilly vs Frank
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If O 'Reilly had said that to my face he would have been picking up his teeth. It's the only language a sand box bully understands.

"one of the comments in regards to the interview with barney states OH! what if someone tried this to sarah palin everyone would be in a up roar ! problem with that is SHE'S NOT CORRUPT and not affiliated with the what democrats and others are claiming is the end of the financial world! thats a pretty BIG SCREW UP don't you think! Barney deserved every bit of that and more!
Posted by: fran | October 3, 2008 10:26 AM"
-
This says it all in a 'nut'shell regarding the right wing base in America. And it's all wrapped up in one word; Exclusivity. They are exempt from fairness, common courtesy, civil behavior, because in their self-entitled world they are fighting a good cause. The ends justify the means.
And bill,
You are seriously suggesting McCain would have received the same treatment? You people are losing your minds.

Fair and balanced:
Gwen Ifill
or
Billy O'Leilly
??

Uh, Simple Jack, Malmedy was an atrocity commited against 88 unarmed American POWs by German soldiers, during the Battle of the Bulge.

All were executed in a field by machine gun fire.

Please explain how American soldiers could be guilty of war crimes, and please provide evidence of Bill O'Reilly making your ridiculous claim.

Partisanship is one thing, but deliberate smears? Yeeeesh, I fear for this country.

Liz hit it right on the head. I wasn't even thinking that.

What I was thinking was, "Frank is a godsend. Everyone should take O'Reilly on. He is a punk and needs to be put back in his place." He doesn't represent anyone. Frank represents a congressional district.

The Republicans have suddenly lost all sense of propriety and decorum, things they want others to consider for them but for which they have no such considerations when it comes to others.

This includes McCain's lack of respect for Obama and Palin's asking SENATOR Joe Biden to let her call him "Joe."

"JOE? I am a SENATOR, lady. Now mind your manners."

The time for polite, diplomatic discourse is over...

Frank should step down - and I believe, investigated for his role in propping up the two failed institutions- his comments were the equivalent of insider trading fraud..

For all of you posting that
O'Reilly was out of line- I would ask you; How far should we allow politicians - like Frank- that were elbow deep in this mess go to talk themselves out of accountability, for the sake of being polite? If you would take Frank for his word- he saw this coming all along, and he did all he could to prevent it.

With all of our us, our kids and our grandkids on the hook for paying for this mess there better be some people resigning being fired etc...AND there better be some very public shouting and confrontation- O Reilly said what needed to be said to "Leaders" like Frank.

It's so easy for O'Reilly to be in his position as a "mouthpiece for the outraged populace", but the fact is that Frank, for all his problems, still has the guts to be a leader, to face his electorate every two years, to stand up and be counted. If O'Reilly really is so outraged, perhaps he should run for office and try to lead. It's very different from that position, Bill.

I thought when you interview someone you're supposed to ask questions. How does attacking someone before the first question help anyone learn about the issues. O'Reilly, and Hannity and Combs for that matter, are paid spokespeople who shouldn't be confused with journalists. FOX is just pathetic.

It's funny how liberals don't like it when their people get interviewed like conservatives get always get interviewed!
It's about time conservatives use the same low-ball tactics that liberals have always used.

People that don't like this interview doesn't like the truth. Fact is Frank has been in charge for 2 years and in 2 years the stock has dropped 90%. Fact is in Private business he would be fired and in reality could be brought up on charges for falsifying the companies position as Frank did in July - in Private business that is illegal. House and Senate - Republicans and Democrats have ZERO accountability and it is those people that make and pass the bills and it is those people that are destroying this country. It is those people tacking on pork right and left on a bailout bill. WE NEED TERM LIMITS TO GET PEOPLE LIKE FRANK OUT OF OFFICE.

I neither support dems or reps but have been watching the politics for the last 3-4 months especially between Fx news and CNN.
I had some respect for B' O Reilly and thought his "no-spin" zone for real up until last night. Bill, I dont care if Barney is at fault or not and may be he is. If you truly represent the media which is about only bringing the truth and fact to public (for which I always respected) you...yesterday your behaviour was so uncouth that it made me feel sick to watch the program. That by no means that i support Barney as I have not watched him for a while. But as a media person you should be educated and experienced enough to keep your control over the situation but apparently you didnt...You will have one less viewer moving forward which I dont believe you care anyways.

Where is O'Reilly's outrage towards everything else that has fallen apart in this country the past 8 years? He is a republican hack and nothing more. Whether or not Frank deserved what he got(he did for all I know), there is nothing resembling anything "Fair and Balanced" in O'Reilly's chosen targets. And all these O'Reilly cheerleaders are nothing more than sheep waiting for O'Reilly, Hannity and Limbaugh waiting to be told how to think next. Grow minds of your own people. The same goes for anyone who is on the far left or right. Politics has turned into something resembling a game show or a college football rivalry.

The Republicans controlled Congress for 14 years, except for the last 20 months, they controlled the WH for the past 8 years and they populated every government department with Republicans and some of you want to blame Barney Frank and the Democrats!

Now THAT'S delusional thinking I can believe in!

Debates are definitely not won by shouting, but perhaps it is time for voters to vent their rage as well. I feel like we have been fairly silent on this matter. It is time to make all those involved accountable for their words. Clinton said the democrats refused to vote for more oversight with regards to Fannie and Freddie fearing those lousy loans would dry up and many would not have the opportunity to own a home. Owning a home is only fun when the owner can afford the house and slowly gets to invest in the house by making continued improvements. We did nobody any favors by putting them in homes whereby they barely were getting by. Barney is a bleeding heart that fuels his contempt for conservatives by throwing money at low income voters and then not watching to make sure the deal is a good one. The hatred from the super left is all about cultural differences stemming from abortion, gay rights, etc., that the left feels the right is intolerant about. It isn't about the war, or even the rich since many liberals are rich themselves, but about their hatred of the religious right wanting them to be 'taken out" like Iran feels about the Jews. Franks, Dodd, Paulson, Pelsoi, have been the ones in charge and so looking back and blaming others before them doesn't change the fact that they took on the trouble when they became the majority party. It is important to know where the problems began, but the blame is really simple. Whoever is in charge, must pay.

I agree with O'Reilly, Frank has done nothing to help the situation at all. He is only interested in blaming the Republicans. Democrats can't blame Republicans because they could have stopped it themselves over the last few years. Republicans can't blame the Dems because they let it go on before the Dems took over. Everyone wants to blame Bush, but he can't do anything without Congress. It is our fault for electing all of the idiots who let this happen. Frank is just as accountable as anyone, maybe more since he headed the committee in charge.

Posted by: heartburn | October 3, 2008 11:11 AM
So, heartburn, would you support a commentator screaming at McCain for his statements leading up to the Iraq war saying that the war would be "Easy" and "Short" Should a reporter get in his face and blame him for the deaths of over 4000 of america's finest young men and women? Has McCain's bad judgement lost him the right to polite diplomatic discourse?

You'd be outraged if a reporter held McCain accountable in the same way you praise Oreilly for holding Frank accountable.

I'll bet O'Reilly would tip-toe thru the tulips with Palin....

Posted by: Doug | October 3, 2008 10:10 AM
-
Show us where anyone in the MSM has publicly screamed 'coward' at Palin? Ifill? Couric? Though she came close to calling Dems cowards when she said something about waving a white flag.
You people are defending the indefensible.
O'Reilly, simply put, is not a journalist, or even a fair observer.

For those of you who are whining that Barney Frank didn't do anything regarding the mortgage crisis, go do a little research. I did.

Barney Frank sponsored H.R. 1427, a bill to create the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). The bill was introduced on March 7, 2007, and the House Financial Services Committee passed it on March 29, 2007, less than three months after Frank assumed the chairmanship of the committee when Democrats took over the House of Representatives in January 2007. The full House subsequently passed it by a vote of 313-104 on May 22, 2007. The Senate did not act on the legislation. The FHFA was eventually created after Congress incorporated provisions that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said were "similar" to those of H.R. 1427 into the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, which the president signed into law on July 30.

But to you whiners, this is "nothing".

Can all you Barney apologist just do a little bit to educate yourselves. Frank and the Democrats prevented Bush from passing stringent controls on Fannie and Freddie -- yes, back when the Republicans controlled Congress in 2003. The systemic risk they posed was known since the 90's and many including Greenspan had testified towards their downsizing. They essentially became the market for mortgage backed securities. In 2003, Bush had to settle on watered down legislation because of every Democrat voting against his original proposal. Just follow the money -- the Top 4 recipients of Fannie Fred dollars are Dodd, Kerry, Obama and Clinton. The WSJ has written extensively on this, but it hasn't been covered by much of the mainstream media because it has many angles unfavorable to Obama (including his involvement with ACORN as a "community orgainizer". Acorn was one of the prime pushers of sub prime lending and extorted much of this from the banks, who in turn bundled these loans into securities that were bought by Fannie and Freddie.
-- Stop drinking the Kool Aid and learn.

If you are going to be stupid enough to listen to Barney Frank it doesn't matter what O'Reilly may have to say to him. Frank is the worst of the worst and Democrats should be embarassed with this loser!!

Although I'm not a huge O'Reilly fan, I thought he was spot on in calling Barney Franks to the carpet. Franks had his say (O'Reilly played it!), and was called on the carpet (why Franks thought he would be treated with kid's gloves, I have no clue. Surely he knew that he would be taken to task for his total mismanagement of the whole situation).

BTW, O'Reilly is not a reporter or journalist. He is not bound by the same rules. It is, after all, HIS show. It's refreshing to see somebody state THE OBVIOUS about Barney Franks to his face on public TV. Lest you think that is cruel, Barney Franks is, after all, a public figure. O'Reilly didn't attack Franks' family, or person; he attacked him on the CLEAR record and wasn't going to allow Franks to put yet another dishonest spin on the facts.

I would be typing the same thing if Franks were a Republican and/or Conservative. I know O'Reilly would have probably been even more harsh with Franks if he WERE a Conservative.

Wrong is Wrong, no matter who commits it.

When it comes to this Franks atrocity, to be seeensitive and Toolllerant would be to give a pass to what should be bad behaviour in anyone's book.

Ask yourself - if Franks were handling your own personal portfolio or finances, would YOU be very cordial in your conversation with him, especially after he tells you that, "hey, I can fix YOUR problem if you just give me your next year's earnings UP FRONT because I'm the smart one and you are to dumb to understand what's really happening here." (I couldn't believe he leveled that at O'Reilly)?

If you did buy into that line, then you truly would earn the DUMB title.

I'm glad O'Reilly had the guts to say what needed to be said. I, for one, will tune in even more.

Discounting the idea that there are really no pundants on the left like Bill, people who yel and browbeat and never let anyone actually speak to the public like adults. My question is, how did this become Frank's fault? Unless I am mistaken we have been under a Republican administration for the last 8 years who and for 6 of them a republican legislature. Does that track with anyone? The President has only started using his veto in the last 2 years, before that everything that the Republican house and senate sent was green lighted.

The deregulation of Franny and Freddy are at fault here. DEREGULATION. That was pushed by the republicans. It's like the old saying goes, repeat something enough times and it becomes "the truth".

Ohh and to the person above who said Gov. Palin is not corrupt. Come on, the woman has more scandals show up in one week than most politicians in 10 years....and that says a lot.

barney frank is one of the most incompetent legislators in the senate. he deserves all the scorn that can be mustered. the bully being bullied is priceless.

"Could you imagine if a reporter would have yelled at Palin like that?"

If Palin had overseen such a collapse, she'd deserve the yelling.

Liz-
There is a huge difference in “bad judgment” – arguable in the case of the Iraq war- and outright lying by the guy that had a big hand in allowing this financial crisis to get as bad as it did.

Perhaps if McCain started to lie, and say that he never supported the war or that he never said it would be easy- then your analogy may work...

Bill, why dont people study more history???They would see that our economy takes a hicup every 100 years. Look back at 1907-8-we had an economic crises for the same reasons as today-the governement makes adjustments to the system just as we adjust our calendars every 4 years for leap year. Watch out for 2030- look at 1930's and 1830's.

The exchange is not surprising given the psychosis and dementia that drive O'Reilly. Why anybody bothers with him is a testament to the depths to which media moguls will go just to make a buck.

Whats wrong with these people? O'Reilly exposed what we all have know. I guess the truth hurts. As far as Palin. She is fresh and new, it's about time that the we finally have someone with new ideas, I frankly am tired of the Washington curuption of the Clintons, Bidens, Bushes, and yes even Obama. (by the way Obama, where is your birth certificate?) I want a president that is not ashamed to fly the American flag as it is, not some new version that is on the side of Obamas air plane. My Grandfather and uncles went to war for our country with the American flag on their sleeve. Is this the kind of change that we want?

Any person that defends Frank because O'Reilly grilled him for getting us in the mess is an idiot. Frank allowed Freddie and Fannie to make bad loans under his watch. He is responsible and to blame everyone else proves he is a crook and a coward.

Barney Frank and Chris Dodd blocked reforms of Freddie & Fannie reforms.
Charlie Rangle writes the tax codes and doesn't pay his taxes. These men should step down from their chaimanships. I'd say Obama & Biden are men serious about change if they called for their resignations.
They won't and they aren't
Too bad for America.

about time Barney Frank got what was coming to him, way to go O'Reilly,now get him to resign...

It is about time someone took on these crooks who always get the kid glove treatment by the press Thanks O'Reily. Keep up the good work.

And they say that the press is giving Palin a hard time? What a double standard.

Even if Bill is correct....he took all his points away by being unable to have a conversation with someone whom he disagrees. I would be embarrassed of that performance.

Fair and Balanced? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
AHHAHAHAHAHAHAH
HAHAHAHAH

No.

Was it right to scream and yell? Is Barney Frank completely to blame? I don't know the answers to either of these questions, but Barney is Captain of the ship as it is running aground. If there were bad Captains before him and he steered us into smooth open waters I am sure he'd be happy to stand on the bridge and take all the credit. Well, as he is the current Captain, he must go down with this ship. I fear we have all, con or lib, been lulled into thinking that public, heart felt expressions, even justified expressions of anger, are somehow wrong. We have been led as sheep to this slaughter by both sides, as we are encouraged to be "nice". I don't even know if anyone has enough passion left in this country to save us from ourselves...

O'Reily tells it like it is. He would do the same thing if he thought a republican was in charge of this fiasco. Why liberals think O'Reily is picking on them, I have no idea. He is what he is. He tells you what he thinks. He is protecting us. We cant call out the Barney Frank's of the world. He can. That interview was the highlight of my week, easy. Im not pointing fingers either, but if you do a little research, you can see exactly where and why this started. Barney Frank needs to step down for all of America's sake. We keep people like that around, the same type of fiasco we are facing now, will happen again in 10 years or so. Great job O'Reily!!!

I admit that yelling back and forth is not an interview, no matter who is involved. I have worked for the Fed Govt for many years, most of that in a Financial management environment. Barny Frank should not be yelled at, he should be investigated! The folks in charge of the institutions that caused this mess should be prosecuted. Especially those working in the government trust! Voting records should be openly published so that the voters can take care of their "representatives". Both Left and Right are spinning this in one way or the other. We are about to spend $700B, people should be fired, jailed, forced to resign, etc. Barny Frank is the poster child for all that is wrong, the bad news is that he is not alone. Bill is mad, we are all mad. To read comments from folks trying to back these criminals is amazing. Everyone wants to put their hand in our pockets! Corruption, price gouging, greed, pork, taxes, taxes, and more taxes! I am one American that is just sick of this, it appears as though Bill is another one. I just dont have a TV show. Keep you cool Bill, but stay on the case!

thank you bill o'reilly for having something Barney Frank doesn't have a clue about; the ability to speak the truth and place the blame where it should be, instead of spewing epistles of nothingness that are paramount with our democratically controlled congress.it's going to take tough talk to get us out of this financial crisis and we are way past due for this line of direct questioning.Socrates made a statement hundreds of years ago that is paramount today concerning our government" It is possible for the people to be taken advantage of by unwise politicians because they can run faster with their dresses up than we can with our pants down.

Bill was correct in his history of the facts but I had a friend who gave me some very good advice, "When you yell, even if you are right, you appear to be wrong". Barney Frank should resign if he has a conscience and Bill O'Reilly should apologize if he has a brain.

I don't know who taught you your manners. Ehen you invite someone over, you treat them with respect. You don't have to agree with them, but you need to treat them with respect.

You owe Barney Frank an apology.

My family would have thrown me out of the house for behaving like that. If I treated a customer like that I would get fired.

Fair and balanced.

No wonder people are hesitant to go onto your show.

I'm generally a supporter of O'Reilly, but I think he went over the top on this one. Fox is one of the only media outlets that is exposing the role of Fanny and Freddie in the financial crisis. I doubt if this shout fest will do much to advance this exposure. In, fact, I think it will have the opposite effect. It will serve only to harden extremist positions on both sides.

The real issue is the irresponsible lending policies of Fanny and Freddy, the flamboyant pay packages of those who ran the organizations, the kickbacks to brokers, and the campaign contributions to prominent Democrats, including Frank and Dodd, who ran interference for the agencies. O'Reilly had no answer to Frank's contention that he supported tough regulation of the agencies, but instead focused on the collapse of the stock. The shouting match that ensued is a major turn-off to people capable of nuanced thought, and the field is left to the partisan crazies on both sided.

Fanny and Fred were at the heart of the current crisis. The essence of the agencies was using politics to make bad loans, The agencies, moreover, were the playgrounds of the Democratic party that manned the executive posts with their operatives and used the agencies as a source of personal wealth for their friends and lavish campaign contributions to friends in Congress.
Did this circus help the public understand any of this? I think not.

Why is Bill O'Reilly on the air? He is an annoying, unreliable, and unfair man in a prominent media position who cannot conduct a factual interview with professionalism.

Shame on you Fox News for allowing this man to continue his angry antics.

Frank was revealed for the phoney that he has always been. It's about time that someone revealed the truth. For someone to compare this to "if Palin" was treated this way. Apples and Oranges. If Palin was responsible for this situation, I would expect her to be spoken to like this. You liberals have thin skin when it comes to one of your own - then again most of you are cowards any way!

Bill,
I think your yelling and screaming at this Mr. Frank was unnecessary and uncalled for. What if this man had a heart attack on your show? This is just crossing the line and outrageous for someone who calls themself a professional. This was not professional and I think I will join the boycott of your station because this type of behavior has got to go!!!!! Your a monster Bill OReilly!

Fannie and Freddie were not the principle culprits in the subprime disaster. The villiains are the mortgage brokers, the appraisers, the big banks and the ratings agencies. Frank is right, and O'Reilley is WRONG. Please people, in order to decide who wion this exchange, you must have some grasp of the facts. Otherwise you are just a bunch of bleating sheep.

I don't know who taught you your manners. Ehen you invite someone over, you treat them with respect. You don't have to agree with them, but you need to treat them with respect.

You owe Barney Frank an apology.

My family would have thrown me out of the house for behaving like that. If I treated a customer like that I would get fired.

Fair and balanced.

No wonder people are hesitant to go onto your show.

Perhaps if McCain started to lie, and say that he never supported the war or that he never said it would be easy- then your analogy may work...

Posted by: heartburn | October 3, 2008 12:44 PM

Ok Heartburn, here's McCain saying he always said the war would be long and tough.

http://thinkprogress.org/2007/01/04/mccain-iraq-easy/

Should reporters now feel free to scream at him and call him a coward? Has he moved beyond the limits of civil discourse?

Barney Frank: Freddie Mac/Fannie Mae Fundamentally Sound

July 14, 2008:

"I think this is a case where Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are fundamentally sound. They're not in danger of going under. They're not the best investment these days from a long term standpoint going back. I think they are in good shape going forward. They're in the housing market. I do think their prospects going forward are very solid."

Not in danger of going under?? Their prospects are SOLID??? They're in GOOD SHAPE GOING FORWARD?

Less than 12 months after Frank made these claims, BOTH WERE INSOLVENT: that is, BROKE. BANKRUPT.

Barney Frank is a liar. Why do I call him a liar? Because he's one of the smartest guys in the Congress. So this ain't simple stupidity.

And am I cheeering that someone finally called him out on it?

You bet.

I think O'Reilly simply felt the way most of us do. Sick and tired of politicians screwing up our country and then flat out lying about it to save their necks. Frank got exactly what he deserved and a great many other people would love to be able to tell their Reps off the same way. O'Rielly let out the big shout towards our governmental officials that I think most people in this country want them to hear. People are angry at all the poor management of our country and I hope this is but the beginning of the outcry to get some people to wake and start doing what they were elected for.

Thank you Bill O'Reilly.

Hold up! We regular “folk” can’t get away with denying our responsibilities when things go wrong - neither should Barney Frank! He was on duty; he got the paycheck! It was his JOB! We “folks” would have been fired – so should Barney Frank. These guys don’t even apologize and seem embarrassed for heaven’s sake.
Bill L
Atlanta

O'Reilly would have done the same job on a republican!!!!
The point is that accountability will never be acquired in Congress. At least Barney had to face some it publically.
Investigations are coming--does anyone think the real truth will be had???

What do you expect to hear from a Democrat?

Frank has done nothing to help the situation at all. He is only blaming the Republicans&Bush. Bush can't do anything without Congress. I agree with O'Reilly.

Shame on you Bill. You behaved so low, with the worst foul language no other interviewer in the world would ever use. No wonder you are called the "worst" by Keith Oberman. You are the "WORST". Hannity and you ought to be laid off and put in quarantine for some time till you deflate your inflated egos. Fox needs to purge itself clean from these two.

Bill O'Reilly is the most obnoxious, unintelligent person I have ever seen! How is he even allowed to be on television I don't understand why anyone would go on his pathetic excuse for a television show. He makes up blatant lies while screaming at his guests and thinks this is how journalism is supposed to be done. He is a disgrace to this country and it is beyond me how Fox News even allows him to have a television show. He is a right wing lunatic that shouldn't get paid a penny for what he does scream irrationally at people and make up lies and then looks like a coward when he is proven wrong over and over again. Please get him off of fox news he is ruining the credibility of your channel. And a very good point has been made, can you even begin to imagine if a reporter talked to Sarah Palin like that I'm sure O'reilly would be all over them. He is so pathetic.

He deserved to be drilled that way, he's a liar and this is unacceptable. People need to start taking responsibility for mistakes they have made. There are many people at fault, both parties included. They need to be held accountable that's the bottom line. No matter what party you say you are from, don't you think someone needs to be held accountable? Or do you want to pat him on the back and let him continue what he's been doing?

Mr. O'Reilly did an excellent job in exposing the deceit and lies that invariably affect us here in the US, as well as our world neighbors. It seems to me that there is a large percentage of politicians whose primary goal is personal enrichment.
It would be pleasing to my ears if the McCain camp focus on the economic issues and tell us exactly what happened, how it happened, who was guarding the hen house, and more importantly, what is he going to do to fix the shenanigans in DC. Enough is enough!

I can't believe this for me it dosen't mater whos right or wrong its the way it was conducted. Being the professional it would appear the restraint would have been No. one I guess not. But what can you expect from a party who has a VP that only has to stand for 90 mins. to be considered ready to lead. Doesn't matter that she can't answer a question and can tell you just that while shes talking to the people of america who by the way want to hear the answer to the question and yet this is suppose to have us excited wow. This wasn't her meeting low expectations this was no expectations but hey if you want your VP or Pres. to be able to drop a oneliner and do it with a wink shes your gal.

I am not surprised so many would come to the aid of Frank. As Bill would clearly point out, these are just "cool-aid drinkers" responding without knowledge. Going along with the popularity. Mr. Frank, aka "fat Barney" was there when in the 90's, under Clinton, this entire debacle began. All it seems, his interest was limited to profiting from Fannie and Freddie's programs to "open the flood gates to those that really couldn't afford these mortgages". Repub's and lenders were warned about "red lining" and made to back down to regulation. Fat Barney, his boyfriend, Raines, Schumer, Pelosi and the rest of that "gang" walked away with millions. Fat Barney should step down. At least Cox is now admitting his errors and he should be investigated also. It is time we see these clowns for what they are. Get them all Bill. Let's see if they are man enough to stand up and admit their errors, pay back the money and do the right thing.

I think Bill should be ashame of his self its one thing to make a point its another to scream and rant at the guess whether they are considered to be right or wrong. You leave the interview with a bad feeling about Bill rather than a clear understanding about Franks. But what can you expect from a party who has a VP that only has to stand up for 90 mins. to be considered ready to lead. I guess if you want someone who can't answer a question and tell you just that while shes talking to the American people who by the way want to know the answer to the question, can come up with a sarcastic oneliner and do it with a wink then I guess she's your gal. (Good Luck).

Bill O'Reilly did what the press used to do. The role of the media is supposed to be the watchdog for the public against governmental abuse and corruption.

Frank was Chair of the Bank Oversight Committe in Congress and is on record saying that were no problems with Fannie and Freddy. As we now, Fannie and Freddy were the main culprits of this financial crisis and Frank said nothing to warn anyone of the coming crisis and in fact he did the opposite.

I'm glad OReilly yelled at Franks and Franks should be kicked off the Chair for his incompetence.

i wished bill o'reilly would have put some clips in there from 2005/2006 where the members of the republican party tried to pass a regulatory bill, and forewarned about the exact problems we are facing today with this bailout/rescue bill.and they (franks,dodds,waters etc.) refused to do so...and stated how great of a job freddie and fannie where doing........check it out bill o'reilly...please

Barney Frank is not completely to blame for the problem. He is however part of the problem with the failure of the Federal Goverment to oversee these agencies that can have such a deep impact on an economy. Barney Frank should at the very least admitt that in hindsight he had made mistakes in the past ragading this failure at the Federal level. Truth is Baney Frank is a very partisan liberal and everything we hate about politicians.

Yeah,

you guys can't deny that Frank went on O'Reilly & blatantly LIED (or TRIED to LIE), so you just change to subject to the VP debate?

You look like idiots. Stay on topic.

Bill: I don't care if you disagree with one of your guests or not, you just don't treat another human being that way. This was over the top. You are a bully and should be ashamed of yourself.
Calling someone a coward is horrible. Fox should be ashamed.

Bill you are awesome. Thank you for standing up for the American people. I loved your interview. Everyone else who had a hand in this economy should get the same kind of lecture and interivew! Keep up the good work

This so-called "interview wasn't about gaining any insight into the nature of the collapse, this was Bully Bill trying to find a punching bag for his rants. I guess this is how the Bush administrations conducts it's foreign policy too. Watching this was like watching Professional wrestling--a big waste of time. Faux News runs their
station like one big reality TV episode. They, along with hate radio, are the biggest contributors to the "dumbing down" of America.

National Security under their eight-year reign of crap also was a landmine that blew up under Bush on 9/11, and of course blamed on him. The party of the diwntrodden and underdog just screwed us beyond recognition and they still don't care-and we will let them get away with this one again. yet every year on Watergate they wear out the Repubs. They need to claim the knife they left in Lieberman's back too.

Bill, you were masterful in exposing this fraud of a politician. He is neck deep in this debacle yet pleads total ignorance of the facts. He defended FNMA and Freddie Mac and said they were fine and needed no oversight. He should go before a grand jury just like the Dems are so quick to suggest when a Republican is charged. This man? is disgusting and unfit to serve. Maybe he should revisit the possibilities of that gay prostitution ring that operated out of his basement "without his knowledge" .

National Security under their eight-year reign of crap also was a landmine that blew up under Bush on 9/11, and of course blamed on him. The party of the downtrodden and underdog just screwed us beyond recognition and they still don't care-and we will let them get away with this one again. This time we are going to elect the very worst of them all, Obama. Yet every year on Watergate they wear us out on media coverage of the anniversary and how bad Repubs are. They need to claim the knife they left in Lieberman's back too. I promise all of you, we will indeed miss President Bush.

I didn't read all the comments so maybe someone already pointed this out to folks, but if not, here goes.

http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/easescredit.asp

Way to go, Bill. Barney Franks is a liar and a traitor, and so are all those other jerks on both sides of the isle who allowed themselves to be bought off and voted yes to socialism.

Rep Barney Frank and Senator Christopher Dodd both benefited from their chairmanships with political contributions from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac which they oversee.
While O'Reilly may be over the top to some, where is the outrage from my fellow citizens, when after all this chaos, the both of them tried to put in a sweet heart deal for their and Barack's friends in the radical left i.e. ACORN?
They wanted to give 20% of every dollar recouped by the US government that's tentatively a 140 billion dollars of this bailout
(pardon RESCUE) package of our investment i.e. taxes. This just because they want to help those struggling community activist groups. Isn't this the behavior that has gotten us here. Barney and company need a good talking to, and since the voters keep sending him and his kind back to Congress, this is about all the discomfort and disrespect they'll get on behalf of those whom they expect to pay for their excesses and not question their noble motives.
PS. The last sentence is sarcasm for those of you still reading from your talking points.

We need to unite as Americans and DEMAND public hearings IMMEDIATELY to get to the bottom of this crisis. We need to demand that Pelosi and Reid convene hearings at once.

O'Reilly is right. Barney Frank is largely responsible for the meltdown. He used his political clout to block any attempt to legislate reform. Now, he must be held accountable. So should any Republican involved.

Ask yourself this; Why are we not seeing any investigation? The answer? Because the Democrats have their fingerprints all over this.

If a Republican were to be found to be at fault, he'd have already been drawn and quartered by the unscrupulous mainstream media. The Democrats just want to say, "This is no time to be pointing fingers. We've got to get through this crisis." Total BS.

Brad
Murrieta, CA

The "Democats" have doomed us!!!

Barney Frank is a babbling liar. He deserved everything he got from Bill. I have never seen someone become so frazzled in my life!

Bill put Barney in the corner and just hammered him with the FACTS and confronted him about misleading investors.

Thanks for standing up for us Bill!

Kudos to you Bill for exposing Barney Frank for what he is. It's time someone did. Love your show.

Thanks Bill,
Its about time someone got aggrivated in the media. Way to go Bill. I think he got what he deserved. Now go after the rest of them. I use to be democrat. People like Barney Frank is the reason I'm Rebublican.

This is to Kevin and Manie, or anyone else that calls themselves "independent". I certainly thought it wasn't gentlemanly that Bill called Barney Frank a coward and a liar. But in truth, Barney Frank IS a coward and a liar. If you won't watch Fox News just because Bill has the gonads to say it, then I wish you good luck trying to find any other news outlet that does give you both sides.

Way over the top with Frank, O'Reilly. I know he is a blubbering fool and it appears a bit deceptive at best, but you're a better person than that and I think we deserve better from Fox News.

Wow, there is plenty of blame to go around here people. The fact that o'reilly can't see that is a joke. I'm not a fan of Frank, but to pin this huge collapse on him since he has been in power is a joke. O'reilly, for thinking this is the case, is a joke, and his credibility is certainly called into question.

Why anyone, and I mean anyone, would go on his show who doesn't agree whole heartedly with him is beyond me. The way he handled himself as a host was borish and unbecoming.

The sad thing is many people believe that when they watch him they are seeing the champion of their cause. He has about as much in common with the "folks" as I do with Donald Trump.