Got to hand it to Democratic Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts. He's spending part of this week haranguing banks to modify mortgages threatened by foreclosures.

Frank is famous for his refusal to strengthen mortgage rules for government-backed lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, despite lobbying by the previous administration. Then he blamed the housing meltdown on everyone but himself.

In one sense I understand Frank's frustration. Banks have been slow to refinance and modify home loans in, or headed, for default. When the Hope for Homeowners plan was approved in early spring, the administration predicted 3 million to 4 million homeowners would avail themselves of mortgage relief subsidized by the federal government. But four months later the plan has helped fewer than 200,000 homeowners.

The problem with Frank is that he's the wrong messenger to be issuing decrees to a banking industry he helped despoil. You get the sense he's just advocating another give-away we'll regretfully pay for down the road.