Dying Democrat gives stern warning to obnoxious liberals swinging too far to the left in his party

By VICTORIA CHURCHILL, US POLITICAL REPORTER Published: 21:41, 3 May 2026 | Updated: 21:59, 3 May 2026 A long-time Democrat who is nearing the end of his life has hit out at the far-left members of his party in a television interview from his hospice care facility. In an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper that aired Sunday, a longtime liberal standard-bearer, Barney Frank, who authored legislation on subjects ranging from banking bills to allowing gay marriage, ripped how far left Democrats have gone. The now 86-year-old Frank, who is in hospice care due to being stricken with congestive heart failure, attacked some of the most radical ideas of a party that he once led. 'It's precisely because I have been on the left that I have undertaken this,' Frank told Tapper. 'Many of us fought to get inequality on the Democratic agenda.' 'But the problem was, as we succeeded in bringing the mainstream of the left into a concern with inequality, we also enabled people who wanted to use that as a platform for a wide range of social and cultural changes, some of which the public isn't ready for,' he added. Frank, who is also set to release a book later this year, noted that Democrats have lost the plot on how to push progressive issues in this day and age.  'We didn't get to marriage until after these other things had been resolved,' Frank told Tapper. 'And that's what I'm suggesting that we do today. The analogy is males and female transsexuals playing sports that are for women.' Former Democratic Congressman Barney Frank joined CNN's Jake Tapper from hospice care to discuss the current state of American democracy, his advice for progressive Democrats, and his message for young people disillusioned by politics on May 3rd, 2026 Frank speaks during a bill enrollment ceremony for the Respect For Marriage Act at the US Capitol Building on December 8th, 2022 in Washington, DC Frank speaks to Tapper from hospice care ahead of the release of his book planned for later this year 'I understand there's a lot of anger about that,' he added. '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 don't support it, you're a homophobe.' Frank presented the candidacy of controversial veteran and oyster farmer Graham Platner, who recently had a Nazi tattoo removed, as an example of what's wrong with his party. Platner has become the presumptive nominee for the US Senate in Maine after the state's current governor, Janet Mills, backed by US Senate Majority leader Chuck Schumer, dropped out. 'I think Platner actually shares with Trump this capacity toward making the most out of the anger that people feel,' Frank told Tapper.  'What I'm afraid of is that he won't be able to translate that into enough votes.' 'But I am concerned that, among some in my party, there has been a flavor-of-the-month tendency, so that someone who is new and hasn't been able to do much is somehow preferred over people who understand the importance of hard work to get controversial things adopted,' Frank added. Criticism of the far left is becoming a common occurrence among Democrats, both younger and older. In an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail last week, Pennsylvania Democrat John Fetterman ripped the members of his party who reject anything associated with Trump. Barney Frank and then United States Senate candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton wave to supporters as the two march in the annual Gay Pride Day parade on New York's Fifth Avenue, June 25, 2000 Barney Frank looks at the gavel left on the podium as he arrives to address the final night of the Democratic National Convention at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA, September 6th 2012 Speaking with the Daily Mail on Monday, Fetterman argued that Democrats need to 'drop the TDS' and back President Trump's proposed White House ballroom after last Saturday's shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, which Fetterman attended. 'The leader of the Democratic party is TDS,' the Pennsylvania Democrat said of so-called 'Trump Derangement Syndrome', arguing, 'our nation needs and deserves this [ballroom].' Trump Derangement Syndrome is a term coined by Trump supporters to describe what they see as an irrational and obsessive opposition to President Trump.  No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. 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