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biden judicial nominees
Facing Pressure to Resign, Feinstein Asks Senate to Replace Her on Judiciary Panel
The California senator's request came as two Democratic lawmakers, including Rep. Ro Khanna, urged her to step down "for the good of the people."
Apr 13, 2023
After two fellow Democratic lawmakers urged her to resign, Sen. Dianne Feinstein said Wednesday that she has asked Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to move to temporarily replace her on the chamber's judiciary committee, alluding to the impact her absence has had on the panel's ability to advance President Joe Biden's judicial nominees.
"When I was first diagnosed with shingles, I expected to return by the end of the March work period. Unfortunately, my return to Washington has been delayed due to continued complications related to my diagnosis," Feinstein (D-Calif.) said in a statement, without offering a specific timeline for her return.
But Feinstein, who is 89, signaled that she has no intention of giving up her Senate seat entirely, saying she intends to "return as soon as possible once my medical team advises that it's safe for me to travel."
Feinstein announced earlier this year that she is not running for reelection in 2024. She's set to leave office in January 2025.
"In the meantime, I remain committed to the job and will continue to work from home in San Francisco," the senator said Wednesday. "I understand that my absence could delay the important work of the Judiciary Committee, so I've asked Leader Schumer to ask the Senate to allow another Democratic senator to temporarily serve until I'm able to resume my committee work."
"The ruling by an extremist judge in Texas has made it clear that Democrats must act with speed and urgency to confirm judicial nominees who will protect the right to an abortion."
Any effort to replace Feinstein on the judiciary panel, which is currently split 10-10 between Democrats and Republicans, could be run into issues if the GOP—which has worked to obstruct Biden's judicial nominations—refuses to grant unanimous consent.
If Senate Republicans object to a unanimous consent request, 60 votes will be needed to replace Feinstein on the committee.
A spokesperson for Schumer said late Wednesday that he "will ask the Senate next week to allow another Democratic senator to temporarily serve on the Judiciary Committee."
Feinstein's statement came after a pair of Democratic lawmakers—Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Dean Phillips (D-Minn.)—said the California senator should resign, with Phillips calling it "a dereliction of duty" for her to remain in the Senate.
In a statement to The San Francisco Standard, Khanna said that "the ruling by an extremist judge in Texas has made it clear that Democrats must act with speed and urgency to confirm judicial nominees who will protect the right to an abortion."
"Senator Feinstein is unable to fulfill her duties," said Khanna, "and for the good of the people, she should resign."
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These Two Democratic Lawmakers Just Called On Sen. Dianne Feinstein to Step Down
"I believe it's now a dereliction of duty to remain in the Senate and a dereliction of duty for those who agree to remain quiet," one of the congressmen said.
Apr 12, 2023
A pair of Democratic U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday became the first members of their party in Congress to urge Sen. Dianne Feinstein to resign, as a deadlocked Senate Judiciary Committee remains unable to confirm President Joe Biden's judicial nominees during her prolonged absence.
Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) was the first to call on 89-year-old Feinstein—who has missed 60 of the Senate's 82 votes so far this year—to step down.
"It's time for Sen. Feinstein to resign. We need to put the country ahead of personal loyalty," Khanna tweeted. "While she has had a lifetime of public service, it is obvious she can no longer fulfill her duties. Not speaking out undermines our credibility as elected representatives of the people."
Less than an hour later, Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) tweeted his agreement with Khanna, arguing that "it's now a dereliction of duty to remain in the Senate and a dereliction of duty for those who agree to remain quiet."
\u201cI agree with @RoKhanna. Senator Feinstein is a remarkable American whose contributions to our country are immeasurable. But I believe it\u2019s now a dereliction of duty to remain in the Senate and a dereliction of duty for those who agree to remain quiet.\u201d— Rep. Dean Phillips \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@Rep. Dean Phillips \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8) 1681336251
Calls for the resignation of Feinstein, who was first elected to the Senate in a 1992 special election, have been growing lately as her absence from the judiciary committee—which is deadlocked 10-10—is impeding her party's ability to confirm judges.
According to the American Constitution Society, 12 of Biden's judicial nominees are currently awaiting judiciary committee votes, while six others have not yet had hearings.
Feinstein says she'll leave office in January 2025. California Democratic Reps. Barbara Lee, Katie Porter, and Adam Schiff are leading contenders for her seat.
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Calls for Feinstein's Resignation Grow as Her Absence Stalls Biden Judges
"This is unacceptable," wrote one commentator. "It is also, like Durbin's continued inexplicable deference to blue slips, easily resolvable. It is time for Feinstein to resign her seat."
Apr 12, 2023
Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein is facing fresh calls to resign in the wake of news reports detailing how her extended absence from the Senate since being diagnosed with shingles earlier this year is impacting her party's ability to confirm President Joe Biden's judicial nominees.
With Feinstein out, the Senate Judiciary Committee is deadlocked at 10-10, leaving the panel unable to advance judges that don't garner support from Republican senators.
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has come under fire in recent days for letting Republicans obstruct the nomination process via the informal "blue slip" process, which effectively gives senators veto power over appointments to court seats in their home states.
But Feinstein's absence from the judiciary committee has also contributed to a marked slowdown in confirmations to open federal court positions, which Republicans rushed to fill when they controlled the Senate under former President Donald Trump.
The Senate confirmed Biden picks at a rapid clip during his first two years in office despite narrow margins in the chamber, but the pace has basically ground to a halt in recent months.
"Only two candidates for lifetime positions as judges appeared before the panel for its first judicial nominations hearing in five weeks [late last month], even though two of President Joe Biden's other nominees were pending long enough to appear before it too," Reuters reported.
Durbin himself has pointed to Feinstein's absence as a primary reason for the log-jam, noting that a "tie vote is a losing vote on the committee" under current rules.
According to The American Constitution Society, a dozen of Biden's judicial nominees are waiting for a Senate Judiciary Committee vote and six have yet to receive hearings before the committee.
"This is unacceptable," The New Republic's Alex Shephard wrote Tuesday. "It is also, like Durbin's continued inexplicable deference to blue slips, easily resolvable. It is time for Feinstein to resign her seat."
"In fact, it's long past time for her to bring her career to a close," Shephard argued. "For the past several years, there have been escalating concerns that she is no longer up to the task of serving as a U.S. senator. In December 2020, Politicoreported that there was 'widespread' fear among Democrats that Feinstein was starting to slip—which is understandable, given her age. (Feinstein, who has served in the Senate since 1992, is the oldest sitting senator.) Aides and other senate staffers told Politico that the then-87-year-old frequently 'gets confused by reporters' questions, or will offer different answers to the same question depending on where or when she's asked,' and appears 'frail.'"
In February, shortly after her office put out a statement announcing she would not run for reelection in 2024, Feinstein told reporters that she had not decided whether to retire, prompting a staffer to tell her the statement was already released.
The California senator is set to leave office in January 2025, and several prominent Democrats—including Reps. Barbara Lee, Katie Porter, and Adam Schiff—are vying for her seat.
"Her absence is keeping Democrats from getting things done. While she may return, the angst over her declining health will remain; it is not unreasonable to expect she will miss time in the future."
The Senate is currently on recess until April 17, and it's not clear whether Feinstein will be back in the chamber by then.
Shephard noted that with Feinstein's "seniority entitling her to seats on both the Judiciary and Appropriations committees, she has an outsize importance within the party, as well as, unintentionally, the Senate itself: Her absence is keeping Democrats from getting things done. While she may return, the angst over her declining health will remain; it is not unreasonable to expect she will miss time in the future."
"If Feinstein were to resign right this very moment," Shephard wrote, "California Governor Gavin Newsom could appoint her replacement, just as he did when he made Alex Padilla the state's junior senator in 2020 after Kamala Harris became vice president."
Jezebel's Kylie Cheung also argued Tuesday that Feinstein "needs to resign right now."
"Feinstein represents 40 million Americans and serves on four Senate committees," Cheung stressed. "It seems we can both thank her for her service and decades of blazing a path for women in politics and recognize that her remaining in the Senate past her ability to do her job isn't exactly a feminist victory—not when women and pregnant people stand to be harmed the most by the stalled confirmation of liberal judges."
Some commentators associated with the Democratic establishment have joined the chorus imploring Feinstein to step down.
"Dianne Feinstein, who should not be in the Senate, is now preventing us from being able to confirm judges," said Jon Lovett, who worked as a speechwriter for former President Barack Obama. "She should resign, and more people should be calling on her to resign."
\u201c.@jonlovett on Dianne Feinstein: \n\nShe is now preventing us from being able to confirm judges... As sad as it is to see someone who has had an incredibly storied and important career... Dianne Feinstein should no longer be in the Senate. She should resign.\u201d— Pod Save America (@Pod Save America) 1681242073
The latest calls for Feinstein's resignation came days after a Trump-appointed federal judge in Texas ruled that the Food and Drug Administration's decades-old approval of mifepristone should be invalidated, a decision that further highlighted the consequences of a judicial system packed with right-wing extremists.
The Biden Justice Department is appealing the order.
If Feinstein does not resign, it's unclear whether Democrats would be able to restructure the judiciary committee to remove her from the mix and ensure a solid majority.
"That would require a resolution to pass the Senate," The American Prospect's David Dayen observed. "Normally such a resolution passes with unanimous consent, but Republicans are unlikely to help Dems pass a bunch of judges."
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