California Sen. Diane Feinstein has defended herself against fellow Democrats, saying she has no plans to step down after a report alleging that the 88-year-old’s memory has deteriorated rapidly and she is mentally unable to continue to represent your state.
“I meet with leaders regularly,” the shocked Feinstein, California, told the leaders of the San Francisco Chronicle’s editorial board on Thursday, hours after the newspaper first published a bomb report on her current mental state.
“I am not isolated. I see people. My attendance is good. I invested the hours. We are a huge country. And that’s why I’m pretty puzzled by all this. “
According to a Chronicle report, a senator from the state’s Democrats said her mental state was “bad and getting worse.” The report also claims that a member of the California congressional delegation who has known Feinstein for 15 years recently had to re-introduce himself during a long discussion.
Overall, the report quoted four of Feinstein’s Senate colleagues, three former employees and a member of the House, who expressed concern that the elderly senator’s memory had diminished significantly, forcing her to leave much of her work to her staff.
Senator Diane Feinstein says she is “puzzled” by reports that suggest her mental health is deteriorating. Drew Angerer / Getty Images
According to The Chronicle, Feinstein declined to be interviewed about the story, but later told the editorial board that no one had directly expressed concern about her mental abilities.
“No, this conversation did not happen,” Feinstein said. “The real conversation is whether I am an effective representative of 40 million people.”
Feinstein, who was first elected to the Senate 30 years ago in 1992, was a prominent force in Washington. She chaired the Senate Intelligence Committee for six years and served as a member of the Senate Justice Committee during the Trump administration.
Senator Alex Padilla defended the daily work of Senator Diane Feinstein. AP Photo / Alex Brandon Senator Diane Feinstein has denied reports of alleged forgetting of staff members’ names. AP Photo / J. Scott Applewright
Two senators told The Chronicle they believed Feinstein recognized them, but she could not remember their names or staff. Sources said she has good days as well as bad days, and sometimes looks like her previous self.
The senator defended her presentation in a statement shared with The Chronicle and The Post, saying it had been several difficult weeks since her husband Richard Bloom died on February 27 at the age of 86 after battling cancer.
“The last year has been extremely painful and distracting for me, flying back and forth to visit my dying husband, who died just a few weeks ago. But there is no doubt that I am still serving and delivering for the people of California and will set my record against someone else. ”
Senator Diane Feinstein’s husband, Richard Bloom, has recently died. ALEX EDELMAN / AFP via Getty Images
House spokeswoman Nancy Pelosi, 82, was one of several members of Congress who defended Feinstein after the report, saying she had not noticed any cognitive decline in her fellow California citizen.
Feinstein’s colleague from the Senate, Alex Padilla, told the newspaper that he was aware of her health concerns, but said that “as someone who sees her several times a week, including in the Senate Judiciary Committee, I can tell you that she still he’s still doing his job and he’s doing well. “
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