Former Rep. Barney Frank, (D-Mass.), who helped the United States through financial collapse, died Tuesday night.
He was 86.
Frank was known for his
biting wit, liberal politics and mastery of financial policy. He served in the House from 1981 to 2013.
Jim Segel, Frank’s former campaign manager and close friend, confirmed his death to The Associated Press.
“I have been trying to decide, by the way, personally, whether it’s better to be an icon or an emoji,” Frank, with his caustic wit, told CNN’s “State of the Union” in a May 3 interview.
He was in hospice for congestive heart failure.
He disclosed before his death he had little energy and little pain.
“Essentially, after 86 years, my heart’s just wearing out,” Frank told Jake Tapper.
Frank represented Massachusetts in the House for 16 terms and became chairman of the House Financial Services Committee during the 2008 financial crisis.
His name became part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.
He co-authored the 2010 law with then-Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) after the collapse of the housing market and the near-failure of the U.S. financial system.
The law, signed by President Barack Obama on July 21, 2010, imposed new rules on major financial firms, derivatives, mortgage lending and consumer protection.
For supporters, Dodd-Frank was viewed as the most consequential financial regulatory overhaul since the New Deal.
For Republican critics, including President Donald Trump, it became a symbol of regulatory overreach. It was partially repealed in 2018.
For Frank, it was the capstone of a career built on unapologetic liberalism, legislative detail and a willingness to fight in public.
Frank was a pioneer for gay rights in American politics. In 1987, while already serving in Congress, he publicly came out as gay.
With this, he became the first sitting member of Congress to do so voluntarily.
He later became the first sitting U.S. representative to enter into a same-sex marriage when he married his longtime partner Jim Ready in 2012.
