Retire or die....

Reporter details 'concerning' conversation with Dianne Feinstein

Alec Regimbal

Jim Newell, a reporter with Slate, had a brief conversation with California Sen. Dianne Feinstein on Tuesday and said the 89-year-old lawmaker seemed to forget being absent from the Senate for nearly three months. 

His account of the conversation was backed up by Los Angeles Times reporter Benjamin Orsekes, who was also present.

Feinstein returned to the chamber last week, the first time she had been back on the Capitol grounds since being diagnosed with a case of shingles in February. Her months-long absence left the Senate Judiciary Committee evenly split between Democrats and Republicans, which made it difficult for some of President Joe Biden's judicial nominees to advance through the nomination process — a reason there were renewed calls for Feinstein's resignation.

Her illness aside, questions about her mental faculties have abounded in recent years, and the interaction that Newell reported having with her Tuesday is probably the most striking account yet. Newell said he was waiting outside an elevator that Feinstein exited, and took the opportunity to ask her some questions. He said she was in a wheelchair and was "flanked" by staffers. He opened by asking her how she was feeling. 

"Oh, I’m feeling fine. I have a problem with the leg," she replied, according to Newell. 

When another reporter waiting nearby asked her what was wrong with her leg, Newell said Feinstein responded by saying: "Well, nothing that’s anyone concern but mine." Then came the most notable part of the conversation: Newell recounted that when the other reporter asked Feinstein how her return to Washington had been received among her Capitol colleagues, she seemed to deny being gone.

"No, I haven’t been gone," she reportedly said, before adding: "You should follow the — I haven’t been gone, I’ve been working."

Newell said Feinstein "turned feisty" when she was asked to clarify whether she meant that she had been working from home. Her office had maintained that she was receiving updates about Senate business while she was recuperating in San Francisco.

“No, I’ve been here. I’ve been voting,” she reportedly said. “Please, you either know or don’t know.”

It's possible she meant that she's been voting since she returned to the Senate last week, which would be true. But according to her own Senate website, she missed 95 out of 102 votes between Feb. 26, the day she was diagnosed with shingles, and Tuesday. Reached by SFGATE with a request for clarification on the senator's statements, Feinstein spokesperson Adam Russell said, "Will let you know if she decides to comment."

Feinstein announced earlier this year that she would not run for another term in 2024, but she said she would finish out her current term. Calls for her to resign seemed to have slowed since her return, but given Newell's account, those calls may resume in short order.