Dianne Feinstein relying on aides to 'remind her how and when she should vote': report

28 May 2023

United States Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-California) returned to work earlier this month to a growing chorus of calls for her to resign due to her lengthy absence battling shingles and her apparent cognitive decline.

Feinstein — chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law — has held elected office for more than half a century and has had a decorated career as a champion for civil rights. But according to reporting in Sunday's New York Times, Feinstein is now dependent upon aides to micromanage her every move.

The latest drama unfolded during a procedural vote on one of President Joe Biden's judgeship appointments.

"Two staff members settled the 89-year-old California Democrat into a chair at the dais as the assembled senators greeted their ailing colleague with a round of applause. When Ms. Feinstein spoke — during a vote on one of several of President Biden's judicial nominees whose approval had awaited her return — she appeared to read from a piece of paper handed to her by a female aide seated behind her," the Times reveals.

After Feinstein cast her affirmative ballot, the Timesrecalls, "the aide knelt next to her and whispered into her ear in between votes — popping up repeatedly from her seat to confer with the senator, at one point clearing away the paper Ms. Feinstein had read from and presenting her with a folder that appeared to contain background information about the nominees."

The paper points out that "the scene was typical of Ms. Feinstein's day-to-day existence on Capitol Hill, where she is surrounded by a retinue of staff members who serve not only the roles of typical congressional aides — advising on policy, keeping tabs on the schedule, drafting statements and speeches — but also as de facto companions to a senator whose age, frail health and memory issues make it difficult for her to function alone."

The Times also notes that Feinstein's staffers "remind her how and when she should vote and step in to explain what is happening when she grows confused."

The New York Times' report continues here (subscription required).

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