{"id":18047,"date":"2026-05-21T13:32:56","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T13:32:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/05\/21\/breaking-news-barney-frank-dies-at-86-washington-blade\/"},"modified":"2026-05-21T13:32:56","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T13:32:56","slug":"breaking-news-barney-frank-dies-at-86-washington-blade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/05\/21\/breaking-news-barney-frank-dies-at-86-washington-blade\/","title":{"rendered":"BREAKING NEWS: Barney Frank dies at 86 – Washington Blade"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Former Mass. congressman came out as gay in 1987
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Former U.S. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) died on Tuesday. He was 86.
The Massachusetts Democrat served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1981-2013. Frank in 1987 became the first member of Congress to voluntarily come out as gay.
The Washington Blade earlier this month interviewed Frank<\/a> after he entered hospice care at his Ogunquit, Maine, home where he lived with his husband, Jim Ready, since 2013. The former congressman, among other things, talked about his new book, \u201cThe Hard Path to Unity: Why We Must Reform the Left to Rescue Democracy.\u201d
The book is scheduled for release on Sept. 15.
NBC Boston reported<\/a> Frank\u2019s sister, Ann Lewis, and a close family friend confirmed his death.
The Blade will update this article.<\/em>
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Former congressman died on Tuesday
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Former U.S. Rep. Barney Franrk (D-Mass.), who served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1981 until his retirement in 2013 and who became the first member of Congress to voluntarily come out as gay in 1987, died<\/a> on May 19, at the age of 86, at his home in Ogunquit, Maine.
His passing came less than a month after he announced he had entered home hospice care due to terminal congestive heart failure under the care of his husband, Jim Ready, and shortly after finishing writing a new book entitled, \u201cThe Hard Path to Unity: Why We Must Reform the Left to Rescue Democracy.\u201d
Despite his frail health, during the last few weeks of his life, Frank agreed to do interviews with multiple news media outlets, including the Washington Blade, where he reflected on his sometimes-controversial positions on issues such as transgender rights.
He told the Blade he had been living with his husband in their shared home in Main since the time of his retirement in 2013 and called his husband a \u201csaint\u201d for caring for him during his illness. In 2012, at the age of 72, Frank married<\/a> Ready, becoming the first sitting member of Congress to marry someone of the same sex. \u00a0\u00a0
News of his passing prompted an outpouring of praise and reflection on his life as a groundbreaking out gay lawmaker by current and former members of Congress and LGBTQ rights leaders.
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healy announced on May 20 that she had ordered the U.S. flag and the state flag to be lowered to half-staff at all state buildings in honor of Frank\u2019s life and legacy and the recognition of his passing.
\u201cBarney Frank was nothing short of a trailblazer,\u201d said Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, the nation\u2019s largest LGBTQ advocacy organization, in a statement. \u201cAt a time when being openly gay in public service could cost you everything, he chose visibility,\u201d Robinson said.
Robinson and other LGBTQ advocates also pointed to Frank\u2019s role in speaking out in Congress for stronger efforts to address the AIDS epidemic during the early years of HIV\/AIDS, his push for the repeal of the \u201cDon\u2019t Ask, Don\u2019t Tell\u201d policy to initially allow gays to serve openly in the military, the enactment of marriage equality for same-sex couples, and broader anti-discrimination protections.
Frank has also been credited with helping to pass the federal Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Protection Act of 2009.
In addition to his longstanding support for LGBTQ rights, political observers have said one of his most important achievements in Congress was his role, as chair of the House Financial Services Committee, in becoming co-author of what became known as the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010.
Coming at the time of a nationwide banking crisis, the New York Times has called the Frank bill that he and then-U.S. Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) wrote \u201cthe most significant overhaul of the nation\u2019s financial regulations since the Great Depression.\u201d
Frank was born and raised in Bayonne, N.J., and graduated from Bayonne High School.
He graduated from Harvard College in Massachusetts in 1962 and worked in various places, including as an assistant to then-Boston Mayor Kevin White, before winning election to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1972, where he served for eight years representing a Boston area district. During that time he attended and graduated from Harvard Law School and became a member of the Massachusetts bar in 1979 after passing the bar exam.   
In 1980, Frank became a candidate for the U.S. House in the Massachusetts 4th Congressional District, which he won with 52 percent of the vote in a four-candidate race, taking office in Januraary 1981. He won re-election decisively over the next 30 years until announcing in 2012 his plans to retire and he would not run for re-election that year.  
The New York Times is among the publications that have reported this week since Frank\u2019s passing that his record as an esteemed and admired lawmaker helped him survive a sex scandal that surfaced in 1990 linking him to male prostitute Stephen Gobie.
Media reports at the time said Frank had patronized Gobie as one of his customers and for a time had Gobie as a roommate in Frank\u2019s D.C. residence in the Capitol Hill neighborhood. In its article this week, the New York Times says Gobie \u201cclaimed that in the mid-1980s he had run a prostitution ring out of Mr. Frank\u2019s home.\u201d
Like other media accounts, the Times report adds that following an investigation, \u201cThe House Ethics Committee did not substantial that claim, but it did find that Mr. Frank had fixed 33 parking tickets for Mr. Gobie and sought to shorten his probation on drug and sex-offense convictions by writing a misleading memorandum on congressional stationery to an official involved in supervising Mr. Gobie\u2019s probation.\u201d
The full House voted 408-18 to reprimand Frank for misuse of his office, but it rejected calls by some to censure or expel him.
\u201cI should have known better,\u201d Frank said in a speech on the House floor at that time, according to the New York Times. \u201cThere was in my life a central element of dishonesty,\u201d the Times quoted him as saying. \u201cThree years ago, I decided concealment wouldn\u2019t work. I wish I decided that long ago,\u201d he said referring to his 1987 decision to come out publicly as gay.
Despite all of this, Frank was re-elected that year with 66 percent of the vote, a development that his friends and supporters attribute to his reputation as a beloved and highly regarded public figure.
PFLAG, the national advocacy group for parents and friends of LGBTQ people, is among the groups that issued statements this week reflecting on Frank\u2019s positive impact on the LGBTQ community.
\u201cFrank was not only the first openly gay member of Congress, but he was also co-author of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 as chair of the House Financial Services Committee, which helped enshrine housing access for LGBTQ+ people,\u201d PFLAG says in a statement.
\u201cHe was also a leading advocate on laws to combat HIV\/AIDS,\u201d the statement says, adding that PFLAG\u2019s national office honored Frank with its Champion of Justice Award in 2018.
\u201cBarney was candid, outspoken, quick-witted and downright funny, and he always had his eye on making progress,\u201d said U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.), the first openly lesbian woman elected to the U.S. Senate, in a statement. \u201cHe was willing to take on anyone who was in his way, regardless of who they were \u2014 I should know, I was one of the many who on occasion got an earful from him,\u201d Baldwin said.
\u2018But I, and anyone else who spent time with him, were lucky to watch him in action and learn from him,\u201d her statement continues. \u201cBarney was a masterful legislator, savvy and strategic, and always thinking of the long game,\u201d she said. \u201cOur country is a better, more just, more equal place because of him, and he will be sorely missed.\u201d
U.S. Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.), who serves as chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus, which represents LGBTQ members of Congress and their congressional allies, issued his own statement on behalf of the caucus pointing out that Frank was one of the two founding members of the caucus.
\u201cI was honored that he came to campaign for me during my run for Congress just a few years after he co-founded the Congressional Equality Caucus, which I now have the distinct honor of leading,\u201d Takano said.
He was referring to Frank and then-Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin\u2019s action in 2008 to found the House LGBT Equality Caucus as the only two openly gay members of Congress, which evolved into the Congressional Equality Caucus.
\u201cBarney proved that what mattered most was the work you did for others,\u201d Takano says in his statement. \u201cI truly believe that we are closer to a more equal world because of Barney Frank,\u201d he said, adding, \u201cCongressman Frank\u2019s legacy touches every part of our fight for LGBTQI+ equality: from his work advocating for HIV and AIDS research to helping pass major pro-equality legislation like the Don\u2019t Ask, Don\u2019t Tell Repeal Act and the Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law.\u201d 
In his May 5 interview<\/a> with the Blade, Frank responded to criticism he received during his tenure in Congress from some LGBTQ rights advocates, especially trans activists, who claimed he had not provided sufficient support for trans rights legislation.
He said he fully supported ongoing efforts to advance trans rights but said those efforts could be jeopardized by pushing issues for which many voters have yet to accept, such as \u201cmale to female transgender people playing in women\u2019s sports.\u201d
Among those praising Frank\u2019s life and legacy at the time of his passing is longtime trans activist Diego Sanchez, who became the first openly trans congressional staffer when Frank hired Sanchez as his office\u2019s Senior Policy Advisor. Sanchez remained on Frank’s staff until Frank\u2019s retirement in 2013.
\u201cBarney was a revered statesman for our country at the local, state, and federal levels and a treasured friend to me,\u201d Sanchez told the Blade in a statement. \u201cHis belief that prejudice comes from ignorance and is only stricken by visibility explains how he came out openly and how he brought me to his staff, with intent and without apology,\u201d Sanchez said.
He added, \u201cI miss him terribly and am glad I got to spend a week with his husband Jim and him this month. Barney made sure that members of Congress could not say they had never met a trans person. I was honored to be a groomsman in their wedding and will miss Barney\u2019s brilliance, counsel, friendship, and wit.\u201d
Sanchez said celebration of life events are expected to take place in Boston and D.C. and details of those events will be announced soon. 
Nine felony grand jury indictments tied to Darin Smith dismissed last week
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Republicans confirmed Darin Smith as U.S. Attorney for the District of Wyoming on Monday, regardless of his history as interim U.S. Attorney for Wyoming and a state senator.
While serving as interim U.S. Attorney for Wyoming \u2014 after being appointed by President Donald Trump last July despite never trying a case outside of his time as a law student intern<\/a> \u2014 former state Sen. Darin Smith likely prejudiced jurors during grand jury proceedings.
Nine felony grand jury indictments tied to Smith\u2019s tenure were dismissed last week<\/a>.
Judges dismissed felony indictments against Cheyenne Swett, Richard Allen, Michael Scott Hopper, Brian Joseph Johnson, Dennison Jay Antelope, Matthew Christopher Jacoby, Matthew Miller Jr., Wolf Elkins Duran, and Jose Benito Ocon. The now-dismissed charges included felony firearm possession, drug distribution, and possession of child pornography, among other allegations.
Smith allegedly told the grand jury that the defendants were \u201cbad guys,\u201d described them as \u201cmurderers,\u201d and said deliberations \u201cwon\u2019t take long.\u201d
Even the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the District of Wyoming acknowledged that Smith\u2019s comments were \u201cill-advised.\u201d
Smith has a history of aligning with Trump over the Constitution and supporting anti-LGBTQ legislation.
In 2025, Smith co-sponsored House Bill 0194<\/a>, titled \u201cObscenity amendments,\u201d which, among other provisions, would have criminalized drag shows. The bill also would have repealed exemptions for public and school librarians from the crime of \u201cpromoting obscenity\u201d to minors. The wording of the bill was so vague that Republican state Rep. Lee Filer said<\/a>, \u201cWe will end up having to arrest somebody for allowing a child to read the Holy Bible.\u201d
Smith also co-sponsored SF0062<\/a>, a bill requiring public school students to use restrooms, sex-designated changing facilities, and sleeping quarters that align with their sex assigned at birth. In March 2025, the Wyoming governor signed the bill into law, along with its House companion.
He also attended the Jan. 6 Capitol riot<\/a> alongside thousands of other Trump supporters.
\u201cSmith was on the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6 … and made the reprehensible claim … that the hundreds of Capitol Police officers who risked their lives that day were guilty of \u2018massive incompetence.\u2019 Smith blames the police for what happened on Jan. 6. Without evidence, he claimed that rioters who breached the Capitol were victims of entrapment,\u201d U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said. \u201cMoreover, Smith is not remotely qualified to be a U.S. Attorney. He\u2019s going to be in the package \u2014 take it or leave it. Prior to becoming the interim U.S. Attorney, he had no courtroom or litigation experience whatsoever. None. And Smith\u2019s lack of experience has had real-world consequences.\u201d
Prior to his work in the Wyoming state legislature, Smith worked as Director of Planned Giving for the Family Research Council, an organization that describes homosexuality<\/a> as \u201charmful\u201d to society with \u201cnegative physical and psychological health effects.\u201d
The organization also believes that sexual orientation<\/a> \u201cshould [not] be included as a protected category in nondiscrimination laws or policies, as it is not comparable to inborn, immutable characteristics such as race or sex.\u201d
During questioning before the U.S. Senate, he denied that his work with the organization shows he has loss of impartiality when it comes to matters of LGBTQ rights.
Also questioning, Smith was asked about a now-deleted Facebook post in which he appeared to express support for Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who was found to be unconstitutional in her refusal to issue same-sex marriage licenses, despite Obergefell v. Hodges.
\u201cPerhaps Hillary and Obama can share the cell with Kim Davis for refusing to uphold the Defense of Marriage Act,\u201d the post said.
When asked why he posted it, Smith told Durbin: \u201cI do not recall.\u201d
Josh Sorbe, spokesperson for the Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats and Durbin, said:
\u201cAnti-LGBTQ+ extremist Darin Smith has no business serving as a top law enforcement officer in any state \u2014 let alone a state with as much history of queer importance as Wyoming. He\u2019s an unqualified insurrectionist with no experience litigating criminal or federal matters, and his bigotry puts into serious question his commitment to upholding the law for all Americans.\u201d
Human Rights Campaign Vice President of Government Affairs David Stacy also condemned Smith\u2019s confirmation to the U.S. Attorney\u2019s office.
\u201cThe justice system in America is supposed to be about ensuring the law is applied fairly and equally. But Darin Smith has spent his career obsessed with making life worse for LGBTQ+ people, opposing marriage equality, cosponsoring state legislation targeting transgender youth, and smearing LGBTQ+ people in public statements,\u201d Stacy said. \u201cJust over two decades after Matthew Shepard was brutally murdered in that same state, Wyoming deserves better than tired anti-LGBTQ+ hate at the helm of federal law enforcement. The Senate should reject Darin Smith and demand a nominee who will put the people \u2014 and justice\u00a0\u2014 first.\u201d
Vermont Democrats condemned comments, demanded apology
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State Sen. Steven Heffernan (R-Addison) equated transgender people to bestiality on the Vermont Senate floor on May 15 while debating an animal cruelty bill.
Heffernan, who was elected in 2024 to the state Senate, constructed a scenario in which a trans person is indistinguishable from someone committing bestiality.
\u201cIn these crazy times, what happens if the individual identifies as an animal having intercourse with an animal? How is the courts going to handle that?\u201d the former member of the Vermont Air National Guard<\/a> said while debating House Bill 578<\/a>. \u201cBeing that we voted through Prop Four, and if it does make it through this state, and I have a gender identity that I identify as a dog and had sex with my dog, is this law going to affect me?\u201d
State Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky (D-Chittenden Central), who presented H. 578 responded professionally.
\u201cThe bill that we are putting forward in the current law is quite clear that any act between a person and an animal that involves contact with the mouth, sex organ, or anus of the person, and the mouth, sex organ, or anus of the animal, without a bona fide veterinary purpose, will be a crime.\u201d
In the video<\/a>, Heffernan continued to ask inappropriate questions \u2014 questions that Vyhovsky answered.
\u201cIf I identify as that animal, will this be able to … It says a person. I\u2019m not a person. I\u2019m identifying as this animal I\u2019m having intercourse with,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are identifying genders, of whatever gender we decide we want to be, and I think I like this bill. I\u2019m going to vote for this bill, but I want to make this chamber aware of what\u2019s coming.\u201d
Vyhovsky made a statement saying this was a planned move in an attempt to \u201cother\u201d trans Vermonters instead of protecting them.
\u201cSenator Heffernan knew exactly what he was doing,\u201d said Vyhovsky. \u201cSen. Heffernan is using the same dehumanizing playbook that has been used against LGBTQ+ people for generations \u2014 the false, ugly suggestion that queer and trans identity is synonymous with deviance and harm. It was wrong then and it is wrong now.\u201d
This derogatory action at the expense of trans people appears to be part of a pattern of behavior from Heffernan in his official capacity.
In March, Heffernan left the floor right before lawmakers voted on Proposal 4,<\/a> conveniently missing the bill vote. PR 4, if passed by the state\u2019s voters in the fall, would amend the state constitution to enshrine protections against unjust treatment<\/a>, including discrimination based on a \u201cperson\u2019s race, ethnicity, sex, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or national origin.\u201d
Heffernan told VTDigger<\/a> at the time that he left because his stomach was feeling \u201cagitated\u201d and he needed to use the restroom. He said he had not made up his mind on how to vote on the amendment, largely because he\u2019d heard from constituents urging him both to vote for and against it.
\u201cMy pizza hit at the right time, I guess,\u201d he said, calling the timing \u201cconvenient.\u201d
Despite his leaving \u2014 and being the only lawmaker to do so<\/a> \u2014 the state Senate voted to pass it 29-0, with Heffernan marked \u201cabsent.\u201d This came after the state House of Representatives voted to pass it 128-14 last week.
Vermont Senate Democrats condemned the statement and used the opportunity to emphasize the need for the state to pass PR 4 on Nov. 4.<\/a>
\u201cIn the wake of Sen. Heffernan\u2019s comments, the stakes of this election couldn\u2019t be more clear,\u201d the statement provided to the Washington Blade read. \u201cTransgender and nonbinary Vermonters are our neighbors, our friends, and our family members. On Friday, Sen. Heffernan used his platform as an elected official representing the people of Vermont to dehumanize them. Senate Democrats will never stop fighting for dignity for all Vermonters. We demand Senator Heffernan apologize to those he has harmed with his words and actions.\u201d
State Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale (D-Chittenden Southeast), speaking in her capacity as chair of the Senate Ethics Panel, responded to similar transphobic comments made by President Donald Trump in a White House counterterrorism strategy document<\/a> last week, in which he said those with \u201cextreme transgender ideologies\u201d should know \u201cwe will find you and we will kill you,\u201d stating:
\u201cA lot of people are living in fear in this country because of what somebody with the power of the pen and the power of the military is saying every day,” Hinsdale said.<\/a> “Just because [speech] is protected does not mean it is worthy of this institution, and does not mean it is worthy of the office we hold and the power that we wield in the lives of Vermonters.\u201d
The Blade reached out to Heffernan for comment but has not heard back.
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\u00a9 Copyright Brown, Naff, Pitts Omnimedia, Inc. 2021. All rights reserved | Powered by Keynetik<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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