(Ken Silva, Headline USA) Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., has reportedly died at the age of 90.
While becoming America’s longest-serving U.S. Senator, Feinstein had a negative impact on the country in terms of protecting individual liberty.
Feinstein was a leading proponent of gun-control measures in Congress, as well as a number of environmental restrictions. And when it mattered most, Feinstein abandoned her liberal principles—voting for catastrophes such as the Iraq War.
Her finest moment might have been spearheading the congressional investigation into the CIA’s torture program in the early years of the Obama administration. During her investigation, it was revealed that the CIA was spying on Feinstein’s office—setting off a bipartisan scandal.
However, no one in Obama’s CIA was held responsible for the incident. Moreover, the full unredacted Senate torture report remains classified.
“It’s my strong belief that one day this report should be declassified,” Feinstein said of the report, though she never did anything to ensure that it would see the light of day.
Feinstein had been frequently hospitalized towards the end of her life, including last month.
And according to the Citizen Free Press, she voted the day before she died.
“She was marked as a ‘yes’ vote on the Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act,” the news outlet said.
Dianne Feinstein voted yesterday.
She was marked as a "yes" vote on the Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act. pic.twitter.com/HTKMPukDTz
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) September 29, 2023
Feinstein has had memory and cognition troubles for years, but her health has come under intense scrutiny in recent months. She missed months of crucial votes on judicial nominees in the Senate earlier this year due to a shingles diagnosis, leading several of her colleagues to call on her to resign.
After her latest hospitalization, longtime political journalist George Skelton, a Feinstein fan, proposed a “great” idea he heard from a reader.
The remedy: “Feinstein could resign from the Senate and Gov. Gavin Newsom could appoint Harris to replace her. Biden then could find a more popular running mate, one more acceptable to voters as a potential successor,” Skelton said.
But despite the troubling signs, Democratic leadership stood by her. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., recently said she is “doing well.”
Democratic leadership’s silence on the issue led some to speculate that protecting Feinstein was a part of the plan to put Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., in the Senate. Schiff is one of several House Democrats seeking Feinstein’s seat and has already won over the backing of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.
