Former Massachusetts Rep. Barney Frank
said on Friday that he wants to serve as interim senator.
Appearing on MSNBC's Morning Joe,
Frank said he has asked Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick to name
him interim senator when Senator John Kerry succeeds Hillary Clinton
to become secretary of state.
“A month ago, or a few weeks ago, I
said I wasn't interest,” Frank said. “It was kind of like you're
about to graduate, and they said: 'You gotta go to summer school.'
But [the fiscal cliff deal] now means that February, March and April
are going to be among the most important months in American financial
history.”
“I've told the governor I would now
like, frankly, to do that [serve as interim senator],” he added.
Frank, the first openly gay member of
Congress and the first to enter a marriage with a member of the same
sex, has previously stated that he is open to a Senate appointment.
Democratic Governor Deval Patrick has
not discussed candidates in the running to fill Kerry's seat until a
special election is held, most likely in the summer.