- A story told in a new book says Diane Feinstein once mistook two different black senators.
- She confused Republican Senator Tim Scott with Democratic Senator Rafael Warnock, saying she was rooting for him.
- Scott is reported to have told Feinstein that “support means a lot” and cooperated with it.
Senator Diane Feinstein is said to have once confused Republican Senator Tim Scott with Democratic Senator Rafael Warnock (two black senators from different parties).
According to some, it excerpt From an upcoming book by Washington Post reporter Ben Terris, big breakwas published in Politico So did a person with first-hand knowledge of the conversation he had with the insider on Thursday.
According to congressional staffers who spoke with Mr. Terris, the elderly senator reached out to Republicans in South Carolina and told them that he was rooting for Mr. Terris and was happy to see him in the Senate.
In January 2021, Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock took center stage in a special election in Georgia, defeating then-Republican Sen. It is now able to pursue a much more ambitious domestic policy.
Scott, a Republican who has been in the Senate since 2013, is said to have echoed Feinstein’s apparent confusion.
“Thank you very much,” he said reportedly said Feinstein. “Your support means a lot.”
A person with direct knowledge of the exchange told an insider that it happened en route to a vote on the Senate floor sometime between January and November 2021.
The person also said the exchange was witnessed by New Jersey Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, who apparently realized at that moment that Feinstein had confused Scott with Warnock, and that Scott had been there for a while. He also said he pointed out aloud that he had served as a senator.
Scott and Menendez declined to comment through a spokeswoman. Feinstein’s office did not respond to an insider’s request for comment.
Interaction underscore Long-standing concerns about 89-year-old senator’s health and cognitive ability.
In December, an insider asked Feinstein why he stopped pursuing the post of Senate interim speaker, a role normally reserved for the longest-serving senator of the majority party.
Feinstein, apparently unaware that his office had already issued a statement on the matter, urged an aide to intervene.
“Okay, then I think we’re done,” Feinstein said at the time.
Then, in February, California Democrats announced they would not be seeking re-election in 2024. Several Democrats are now running to succeed her, including Rep. Adam Schiff, Rep. Katie Porter, and Rep. Barbara Lee.
Shortly after announcing his retirement, however, Feinstein contracted a shingles infection that kept him out of Washington for nearly three months due to health complications.
This has left the Senate Judiciary Committee in a dead end, making it difficult for the party to endorse a candidate who lacks Republican support.
As a result, several House Democrats Including New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Some called for Feinstein to resign, openly arguing that he was no longer fit to serve in the Senate.
— Rep. Dean Phillips 🇺🇸🟧 (@RepDeanPhillips) April 12, 2023
But on Wednesday, Mr. Feinstein finally returned to the Capitol, continuing to struggle with balance and vision problems. If Feinstein does not step down, he will stay in office for more than a year and a half until his term ends in January 2025.