Dianne Feinstein digs in [View all]
Dianne Feinstein is once more displaying the stubborn approach that’s powered her storied career as pressure mounts on her to return to Washington or resign.
Confidants and top allies to the 89-year-old Democratic senator are rebuffing calls for her to not just temporarily remove herself from the Senate Judiciary Committee but step down from her job entirely before her term is up in 2024.
They argue her request this week to be replaced on the committee while recuperating from shingles should satisfy critics — at least for now. They view the calls for her to quit as laced with ageism, sexism, ideological disputes and unchecked political opportunism. And there’s considerable anger being directed at her detractors for not exercising patience during a difficult time while showing her the respect they think she’s earned.
“Ro Khanna has no influence on her whatsoever,” said one California Democrat granted anonymity to discuss the senator’s thinking, referring to the first sitting lawmaker who publicly called on her to resign. Feinstein “is not going to respond to pressure.”
The resolve bubbling up from Feinstein’s orbit adds yet more fuel to the Democratic Party’s combustible situation. The senator has been absent from Congress for nearly two months while dealing with her illness, which means the party can’t move some of President Joe Biden’s nominees through the Judiciary Committee. Aides say they still believe she will return when medically cleared to travel. But Feinstein so far has offered no timeline for when she will be back in Congress, prompting concern among fellow party members that she won’t really return at all.
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/04/14/dianne-feinstein-digs-in-00092171
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