Sen. Feinstein, 87, files initial paperwork to run for re-election in 2024
That appears to be a real possibility after L.A. Magazine reported that the 87-year-old U.S. senator from California filed the initial re-election paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday.
By the 2024 election, Feinstein, who is already the oldest sitting senator, will be 91. If she were to win re-election and serve her entire term, she would be 97.
It was just last month that prominent liberal commentators suggested that Feinstein should retire, citing "cognitive decline."
"It's time for Sen. Feinstein to retire," wrote UC Irvine law professor and CNN contributor Rick Hasen. "She did some great work in Senate. But it's been clear for last few years that her cognitive decline is serious. Let Gov. Newsom appoint someone who can fully represent CA's interests until election."
According to a New Yorker article in December, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer , D-N.Y., had to ask Feinstein twice to step down from her role as the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee because she forgot the first conversation. The article cites an aide to another Democratic senator who stated, “She’s an incredibly effective human being, but there’s definitely been deterioration in the last year. She’s in a very different mode now.”
The article also cites several unnamed sources close to Feinstein and the Senate who say "her short-term memory has grown so poor that she often forgets she has been briefed on a topic," and that her "staff has said that sometimes she seems herself, and other times unreachable."
Feinstein stepped down from her position as the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee in late November after facing criticism for her handling of Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court confirmation hearings just weeks before the election. Some Democrats wanted Feinstein to be more aggressive in efforts to stop Barrett's confirmation.
Feinstein has said she hasn't considered retiring early.
“We do get things done and we do pass bills. You do get older, that’s true. But I have been productive,” she told the Los Angeles Times last month.
That appears to be a real possibility after L.A. Magazine reported that the 87-year-old U.S. senator from California filed the initial re-election paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday.
By the 2024 election, Feinstein, who is already the oldest sitting senator, will be 91. If she were to win re-election and serve her entire term, she would be 97.
It was just last month that prominent liberal commentators suggested that Feinstein should retire, citing "cognitive decline."
"It's time for Sen. Feinstein to retire," wrote UC Irvine law professor and CNN contributor Rick Hasen. "She did some great work in Senate. But it's been clear for last few years that her cognitive decline is serious. Let Gov. Newsom appoint someone who can fully represent CA's interests until election."
According to a New Yorker article in December, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer , D-N.Y., had to ask Feinstein twice to step down from her role as the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee because she forgot the first conversation. The article cites an aide to another Democratic senator who stated, “She’s an incredibly effective human being, but there’s definitely been deterioration in the last year. She’s in a very different mode now.”
The article also cites several unnamed sources close to Feinstein and the Senate who say "her short-term memory has grown so poor that she often forgets she has been briefed on a topic," and that her "staff has said that sometimes she seems herself, and other times unreachable."
Feinstein stepped down from her position as the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee in late November after facing criticism for her handling of Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court confirmation hearings just weeks before the election. Some Democrats wanted Feinstein to be more aggressive in efforts to stop Barrett's confirmation.
Feinstein has said she hasn't considered retiring early.
“We do get things done and we do pass bills. You do get older, that’s true. But I have been productive,” she told the Los Angeles Times last month.
https://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/Sen-Feinstein-87-files-paperwork-to-run-for-15866190.php?IPID=SFGate-HP-CP-Spotlight