Pressure grows on Dianne Feinstein to return to Senate or step aside amid crucial votes
Could Dianne Feinstein return to the Senate next week— and end a prolonged absence that’s making it tough for Democrats to win approval of a big clean air policy and confirmation of judges?
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s notes at a Tuesday news conference showed that he is “hopeful” that the California Democrat will return, the senator’s office said. The notes were available to Schumer at the press briefing but he did not discuss them.
Feinstein’s office said it has no timetable for coming back; it’s up to her medical team.
The five-term incumbent, 89, has been staying at her San Francisco home as she recovers from shingles.
She’s been away from the Senate since mid-February and has not voted since then, as the drumbeat for her to return or step aside slowly grows.
Her vote would have given Democrats a win last week on a big clean air initiative. When Sen. Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, joined the Senate’s 49 Republicans to oppose limits on truck emissions, the vote to overturn the Biden administration effort succeeded, 50 to 49.
Had Feinstein been present and voting with the Democrats, as expected, the resulting 50-50 tie would have been broken in the Democrats’ favor by Vice President Kamala Harris.
The outcome sparked outrage from Rep. Rashida Talib, D-Michigan, one of four members of Congress who has called for Feinstein to step down.
“Because Sen. Feinstein was absent, Republicans are passing legislation through the Senate, undermining the right of our residents to breathe clean air,” she tweeted.
The only Californian to call for Feinstein to resign is Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Santa Clara.
After the truck emission vote, he was clearly annoyed. “Because Senator Feinstein was absent, the Senate overturned a Biden rule that would cut pollution from heavy duty trucks and cause harm to people’s lungs,” he tweeted.
Stalled Judges
Feinstein’s absence is most acutely felt on legal matters. Because she is not present, the Senate Judiciary Committee has been operating with 10 Democrats and 10 Republicans.
Some committee Democrats floated the idea of subpoenaing Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to appear before the committee.
He would be questioned about his dealings with billionaire Harlan Crow, including lavish vacation trips and Crow’s purchase of the house where Thomas’ mother lives. Thomas did not disclose the transaction, even though a federal law requires it in most cases.
But it takes a majority to authorize a subpoena, and Republicans will not go along. So without Feinstein, the committee is deadlocked.
It’s also stalled on advancing judges. Over the last 20 or so years, each political party has made confirmation of politically sympathetic judges a big priority.
Since Feinstein last voted in mid-February, the judiciary committee had been unable to advance President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees.
When Feinstein said April 12 she would return to the Senate but provided no timetable, she said she would step away from the committee temporarily. Democrats attempted to fill her seat, but were blocked by Republicans.
Afterwards, GOP lawmakers agreed to go along with Democrats on judges as long as they’re qualified.
On April 20, in bipartisan votes, the committee approved seven judicial nominees and sent them to the full Senate for votes.
Among them were Mónica Ramírez Almadani and Wesley Hsu, both nominees to be district judges for the Central District of California.
In another session, it advanced the nomination of another judge. But it also held six nominees who were unable to attract
Republican support.
The backlog is growing and some Democrats are getting impatient.
“Her refusal to either retire or show up is causing great harm to the judiciary — precisely where repro rights are getting stripped. That failure means now in this precious window Dems can only pass GOP- approved nominees,” said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, D-New York, on Bluesky, a new social media forum.
Next up could be crucial votes on raising the nation’s debt limit. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned this week that the U.S. government could hit the limit as soon as June 1. Democrats and Republicans are struggling to find a way to raise the ceiling.
It’s likely that any Democratic plan could wind up needing every vote it can get, since Republicans are unifying behind a GOP House plan to dramatically cut spending in exchange for raising the debt limit.
The debt limit votes are likely this month.
This story was originally published May 2, 2023 at 5:25 PM.
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