Dianne Feinstein, Longest Serving Female Senator, Dies at 90

US Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), the longest serving female US senator in history, died Friday at 90. Feinstein, who had announced that she would not run for reelection in 2024, had been facing health issues the past few years, including shingles, encephalitis, Ramsay Hunt syndrome (causing face paralysis and other sensory issues), and possible dementia. 

Feinstein, born in 1933, started her political career on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1970. She became president of the board in 1978, which allowed her to become acting mayor after the assassinations of Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk. Feinstein won election as mayor in 1979, where she served until 1988.

Feinstein ran for California governor in 1990, losing to Republican candidate, US Senator Pete Wilson. Feinstein made a political comeback in 1992, winning Wilson’s Senate seat in a special election in a year that saw six other women elected to or currently serving in the Senate (often termed ‘The Year of the Woman.’)

Her death leaves the Senate with a 50-49 Democratic majority. Until a replacement is named, only one Democratic senator needs to vote against his or her party to block legislation. California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, has vowed to appoint a black woman to replace Feinstein in the Senate. While one black woman, Bay Area Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D) is already running for the seat, Newsom has said he will not appoint anyone currently in the race for the seat, which he says will create an unfair advantage against the other candidates, which include Democratic House representatives Katie Porter and Adam Schiff.

 

Congress Struggles to Avoid Shutdown

The federal government is nearing another shutdown of non-essential operations, which would make it the fourth such occurrence since September 2013. Congressional leaders have so far failed to arrive at a spending agreement, with House Republican leadership unable to pass their own proposal as a group of conservative lawmakers have voted with Democrats to stop any GOP proposal from advancing.

The GOP proposal would fund the government for thirty days as both parties work to reach a more long-term solution. However, the group of breakaway Republicans has criticized any funding proposal that does not meet their demands for deep spending cuts and other conservative priorities. The small GOP majority in the House (221-212) gives this group near veto power absent GOP leadership relying on Democratic votes to pass their plan.

One of these lawmakers, Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL), has given no indication of backing down, saying, “I’m doing everything in my power to stop the uniparty…The battle is on.” The ‘uniparty’ is a term some use to describe the establishment of both the Democratic and Republican parties.

 

Heavy Rains Flood New York Subways

 

Nearly eight inches of rain fell in some areas of New York City this past week, causing flash flooding in the nation’s most populous city. New York Governor Kathy Hochul (D) declared a state of emergency for the area. Some areas in Westchester County just north of the city required rescues using inflatable rafts to retrieve people from flooded buildings. 

The rain caused the New York City subway system to flood, disrupting the method of transportation many in the city rely upon for getting to work. Some bus riders were also stranded for hours on flooded streets.