Women Lawmakers Come to Feinstein’s Defense
Women across the aisle are defending Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), saying they see sexism and ageism in the calls for her to resign from Congress.
Why it matters: These women say Feinstein should determine when her political career ends, not others in her party frustrated by her absence.
- “To me it’s ageist and it’s sexist,” said Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa). “[I]f it were a dude would they be saying you need to step down, or you need to recuse yourself from a committee?”
- “I don’t know if it’s age discrimination, sex discrimination, but we do know they wouldn’t do it to a man,” said Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.).
Zoom in: Feinstein, 89, is the oldest member of Congress — and her absence while hospitalized for shingles has made it harder for Senate Democrats to push judicial nominees through committee.
- “She has the right, in my opinion, to decide when she steps down,” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) said Sunday on CNN.
- “It’s interesting to me … I’ve never seen them go after a man who was sick in the Senate in that way,” said Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) last week.
- “When women age or get sick, the men are quick to push them aside. When men age or get sick, they get a promotion,” tweeted Rep. Norma Torres (D-Calif.).
- On Meet the Press, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.) said “it’s up to” Feinstein to determine if she should resign but was “pleased” the lawmaker asked for a fill-in on the Judiciary Committee.
What’s next: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) plans to hold a vote on temporarily replacing Feinstein, he said on Tuesday.
- Schumer added he hopes Feinstein can return to the Senate, but he wants Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) to serve in her absence on Judiciary.
- Democrats will need at least ten Republicans to back temporarily replacing Feinstein on Judiciary and that effort is likely doomed.
- Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) told HuffPost that he doesn’t expect “any Republicans to cooperate.”