Retiring Massachusetts Rep. Barney
Frank has not ruled out a Senate appointment.
On Friday, President Barack Obama
nominated Senator John Kerry, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, to succeed Hillary Clinton as secretary of state.
“I think it is fair to say that few
individuals know as many presidents and prime ministers or grasp our
foreign policies as firmly as John Kerry, and this makes him a
perfect choice to guide American diplomacy in the years ahead,”
Obama said in announcing his choice.
With his years working in the Senate,
Kerry is considered a shoo-in for confirmation.
Speaking with POLITICO
before Obama's announcement, Frank, the first openly gay member of
Congress and the first to enter a marriage with a member of the same
sex, said he was not ruling out the possibility of a short-term stint
in the Senate.
Democratic Governor Deval Patrick has
not discussed candidates in the running to fill Kerry's seat until a
special election is held next year.
“The governor ought to be free to
make whatever choices he makes,” Frank said. “In Massachusetts,
you're talking about an interim, not a a permanent appointment. I
certainly would not take on any long-term appointment. As for an
interim thing, I think accepting offers that haven't been made is
kind of presumptuous.”
Wisconsin Senator-elect Tammy Baldwin
is the chamber's first openly gay member.