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Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) has seen better days, according to fellow Democrats.
Speaking to the San Francisco Chronicle in an article published Thursday, several Democrat politicians and staffers divulged the 88-year-old senator’s memory appears to be slipping at an alarming rate, putting her ability to represent the people of California in jeopardy.
“It’s bad, and it’s getting worse,” one unidentified Democrat senator said, adding that Feinstein has trouble “keeping up with conversations and discussions” in Congress.
An unnamed Democrat lawmaker recounted an instance where he had to reintroduce himself to Feinstein several times during a discussion.
“I have worked with her for a long time and long enough to know what she was like just a few years ago: always in command, always in charge, on top of the details, basically couldn’t resist a conversation where she was driving some bill or some idea. All of that is gone,” the lawmaker told the Chronicle. “She was an intellectual and political force not that long ago, and that’s why my encounter with her was so jarring. Because there was just no trace of that.”
Feinstein’s extremely old age and fading abilities stand in stark contrast to the work of fellow Democrat California Senator Alex Padilla, 49, who’s active on the campaign trail and interactive with voters.
An anonymous California Democrat staffer told the Chronicle, “There’s a joke on the Hill, we’ve got a great junior senator in Alex Padilla and an experienced staff in Feinstein’s office.”
The article also highlighted Feinstein’s heavy reliance on staffers to understand legislation and carry out votes, in addition to helping her move about Congress.
Feinstein has at least one staff member with her at essentially all times in the Capitol. And staff members guide the senator to an extent far beyond her colleagues.
[…]
During that Jan. 20 hearing, and during a Feb. 3 hearing for a similar bill to loosen phone makers’ control over app purchases, a staff member hovered at Feinstein’s right hand during every roll call, sitting down once she had cast her vote. Several times, the staff member engaged in lengthy conversation with Feinstein.
It’s not uncommon for senators to confer with staff during hearings or to read prepared statements and questions. But few if any senators appear as reliant on staff input as they move around the Capitol.
The article also references an occasion from December 2020 in which Senate Democrat Majority Leader Chuck Schumer had to repeatedly remind Feinstein “that she needed to give up the Judiciary Committee leadership post because she didn’t remember he had already told her.”
The Chronicle points out Feinstein’s mental decline is a liability for the country as she could potentially stand third in line to the presidency.
Adding urgency to the recent concerns: If Democrats retain control of the Senate next year, Feinstein will succeed retiring Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy as the Senate’s president pro tem — putting her third in line for the presidency. Feinstein has filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission that would allow her to run in 2024, a formality that lets her keep her fundraising accounts active, though she has not yet declared whether she intends to run.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), 82, defended her octagenarian counterpart, claiming “Senator Feinstein is a workhorse for the people of California and a respected leader among her colleagues in the Senate. She is constantly traveling between California and the Capitol, working relentlessly to ensure Californians’ needs are met and voices are heard.”
Pelosi added that it’s “unconscionable that, just weeks after losing her beloved husband of more than four decades and after decades of outstanding leadership to our City and State, she is being subjected to these ridiculous attacks that are beneath the dignity in which she has led and the esteem in which she is held.”
Responding to the allegations, Feinstein claimed to the Chronicle late last month that she was more than capable of carrying out her duties, though they declined an interview request.
“The last year has been extremely painful and distracting for me, flying back and forth to visit my dying husband who passed just a few weeks ago,” a statement from Feinstein to the Chronicle stated. “But there’s no question I’m still serving and delivering for the people of California, and I’ll put my record up against anyone’s.”
In a statement released Friday, Feinstein added the “real question is whether I’m still an effective representative for 40 million Californians, and the record shows that I am.”
On Friday, the San Francisco Chronicle published an editorial board opinion column urging Democrats to insist on Feinstein’s resignation, saying, “If Feinstein is mentally unfit, Democrats need to tell her openly. And she should resign.”
Biden and Feinstein's brains are mush. Pelosi's too drunk to know what day it is. There are more examples. What does it say about these "people" when they don't have the decency to step down? What does it say about us when we allow this to continue?
— Back on Double Secret Probation (@thecraigrpowers) April 15, 2022
I support Diane Feinstein’s decision to not step down due to mental decline and instead wait until she shits her pants in Congress to make her exit from politics.
— An0maly (@LegendaryEnergy) April 15, 2022
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