Feinstein’s health has Newsom in a political trap of his own making

Whither Dianne Feinstein?

Feinstein, a fixture of California politics for more than a half-century and a U.S. senator for three decades, recently returned to the Capitol after a weeks-long battle with shingles, a very debilitating disease.

One might have thought that her return, after much carping from those on the Democratic Party’s left wing about her absence, would quiet those who wanted her to resign.

However, the critics didn’t miss a beat. They could no longer complain that she was AWOL and thus inhibiting the party’s ability to advance an agenda in the closely divided Senate. But they continued the drumbeat, citing the obvious fact that age (she’s 89) and the lingering effects of shingles have worsened the decline of her cognitive abilities.

Feinstein’s impairment has virtually no effect on the Senate’s operations. As long as she is alive and can an answer the roll call, President Joe Biden and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer can do whatever they would be able to do with any other Democrat occupying one of California’s Senate seats.