Dianne Feinstein grants power of attorney to daughter but still won’t resign

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) has given the strongest sign yet that she can no longer serve well in the Senate. She has given a complete power of attorney to her daughter, who has since filed to lawsuits on her behalf. Yet she refuses to resign, for reasons best known to herself.

Dianne Feinstein turns over her affairs

On August 3 came reports in the New York Post and The New York Times that Feinstein, 90, had granted power of attorney to her daughter Katherine Feinstein, age 66. The younger Feinstein is a former judge and currently President of the San Francisco Fire Commission. The elder Feinstein is feuding with the heirs of her late husband’s estate, disputing the ownership of a beach house and the death benefit from her late husband’s life insurance policy. Dianne Feinstein is claiming she needs the money to cover her own increasing health care costs.

Last week she seemed to have forgotten how to vote when the National Defense Authorization Act came to a vote. Instead of simply saying “Aye,” she started launching into a speech. Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) repeatedly said, “Just say ‘Aye’” to resolve the impasse.

But the spectacle of a Senator granting complete power of attorney to a relative while still serving, prompted calls for her to resign. A debate started on Platform X as to whether term limits can stop a Senator from serving “past her prime.” This post illustrates the consensus that one having to grant such power shouldn’t continue in the Senate.

Dianne Feinstein is the oldest currently serving Member of Congress. She’s already indicated (so far) that she will not seek re-election in 2024, when her seat comes up. In fact, before Midterms, Business Insider noted that the 117^th Congress had a median age of 61.5 years, the highest in history.