Congressman Frank backs Clinton

US Representative Barney Frank is endorsing Hillary Clinton for president and will be an economic adviser to her campaign, it announced this afternoon.

"I have from the beginning of this campaign believed that Hillary Clinton was the candidate best qualified to serve as President," Frank said in a statement issued by the Clinton campaign. "I am convinced that once elected, the qualities she will bring to the job -- commitment, intellect, and political skills -- will make her an extremely effective leader in our effort to reverse the badly flawed course on which George Bush and past Republican Congresses have set this country."

Frank rose to the leadership of the House Financial Services Committee after Democrats wrested control of Congress last November.

He is the latest prominent Massachusetts politician to cast his or her lot in the Democratic nomination fight. Barack Obama, for instance, has the support of Governor Deval Patrick, who campaigned for him in New Hampshire this past weekend.