Barney Frank shocks grads with unfunny 'hoodie' joke

Sometimes politicians say the most impolitic things. Speaking at the UMass Dartmouth's commencement ceremony Sunday, Massachusetts Rep. Barney Frank startled the crowd with a misguided quip directed at civil rights luminary Hubie Jones, who was receiving an honorary degree. "When you get an honorary degree they give these," the Democratic congressman said, indicating his own commencement gown hood, "and Hubie, I think you now got a hoodie you can wear and no one will shoot at you." Frank later said he'd meant no offense and had used the Trayvon Martin-alluding "hoodie" joke before "to ridicule the notion that a hooded sweatshirt is somehow sinister." Time to graduate it out of his repertoire.