Rep. Frank denies partner's job was payoff

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BOSTON, May 26 (UPI) -- U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., Thursday denied he pressured mortgage giant Fannie Mae to hire his partner in the 1990s.

Frank told the Boston Herald he casually recommended Herb Moses for an entry-level job. Frank said Moses, who had been working as an economist for the Department of Agriculture and had an MBA, was well qualified for the position.

Gretchen Morgenson, a financial columnist for The New York Times and author of a book on the financial meltdown, talked about Frank's relationship with Fannie Mae in an interview Wednesday on NPR. She said executives "rolled out the red carpet" for Moses.

In 1991, when Moses was hired, Frank was a junior member of the Financial Services Committee. The couple broke up in 1998, and Moses left his job the same year.

Fannie Mae was also generous with campaign contributions to committee members. Frank got a total of $42,000 between 1989 and 2008, the Herald said.