Barney Frank Is the First Married, Openly Gay Congressman
Barney Frank became the first sitting member of Congress to enter into a same sex marriage on Saturday evening. Frank married Jim Ready, who he's been with since 2007, and The New York Times gave them the full nuptial treatment. Frank was also the first Congressman to openly come out as a gay man in 1987.
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The two were married in a short ceremony at a Marriott hotel in Newton, Massachusetts. The ceremony was so short it only took five minutes. Frank had said he wanted it to be " short and to the point." Their vows were adorable in a very Washington way:
And in vows written by the couple, Mr. Frank and Mr. Ready pledged to love each other “on MSNBC or on Fox” and “in Congress or in retirement,” a reference to Mr. Frank’s decision not to seek another term.
The two men met at a fundraiser in 2005. Ready was with another man at the time, but his health was failing and they both knew he'd need to move on. His partner introduced him to Frank, and the two became friends. In 2007, after Ready's partner had passed, they began seeing each other. They quickly became fell for each other, and Frank's colleague's noticed he was different when Ready was around, for the better:
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill said they began to see changes in their usually cantankerous colleague. “I should’ve known you were here,” said one leading House Republican after bumping into Mr. Ready in a hallway. “Barney was nice to me today.”
Frank's already announced he won't be seeking reelection, and is planning to retire when his term is up. He told New York earlier this year (via Politico's wedding announcement) he would have put off the wedding if he was seeking reelection, but wanted to go for it before he's retired. "I do think, to be honest, if I was running for reelection, I might have tried to put the marriage off until after the election, because it just becomes a complication. But I did want to get married while I was still in office. I think it’s important that my colleagues interact with a married gay man."
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Congratulations, you crazy kids.
