Former Congressman Barney Frank warned on Sunday that while dying in a hospice of congestive heart failure in Maine.
Frank, 86, was a liberal stalwart who fought to legalize same-sex marriage and helped pass Dodd-Frank, the Wall Street regulations, after the 2008 financial crash.
“We didnt get to marriage until after these other things had been resolved,” Frank said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”Â
He added, “And thats what Im suggesting that we do today. The analogy is males and female transsexuals playing sports that are for women.”
Frank is set to release a book criticizing the far-left wing of the Democratic Party, claiming that they have neglected more pressing issues like economic inequality and instead pushed more progressive causes. The former lawmaker wants Democrats to be more strategic about pushing far-left issues.Â
“I understand theres a lot of anger about that,” he continued. “And I think, in the interest of the transgender community, as well as others, it would be better to go at that in a more granular way, and not simply announce that, if you dont support it, youre a homophobe.”
Frank served in the House of Representatives from from 1981 to 2013.
A new national poll released earlier this month is the latest to indicate that Democrats are with their party’s image as they try to win back congressional majorities from the Republicans in this year’s midterm elections.
Just 28% of Americans questioned in a CNN poll view the Democratic Party positively, with 56% seeing Democrats in an unfavorable light.