OAN’s Abril Elfi
7:46 AM – Friday, September 29, 2023
United States California Senator Dianne Feinstein has died at 90-years-old.
Advertisement
On Friday, James Sauls, chief of staff to Senator Feinstein (D-Calif.), released a statement announcing her passing and stating she “left a legacy.”
“Sadly, Senator Feinstein passed away last night at her home in Washington, D.C. Her passing is a great loss for so many, from those who loved and cared for her to the people of California that she dedicated her life to serving.” he said. “She left a legacy that is undeniable and extraordinary. There is much to say about who she was and what she did, but for now, we are going to grieve the passing of our beloved boss, mentor and friend.”
For more than a year, the long-serving senator had been troubled by serious health problems, prompting many to question her fitness for office.
According to the legislative record, Feinstein was present in the Senate on Wednesday and voted at 11:45 a.m. However, she missed two votes later in the day.
When Feinstein was not able to attend a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Thursday, Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said it was because “she did not feel well [that] morning.”
She was elected to the Senate for the first time in 1992, which became reportedly known as the Senate’s “year of the woman” after the election of Senators Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Carol Moseley Braun (D-Ill.), and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.).
Before being elected as a senator, Feinstein had spent nine years as San Francisco County Supervisor in 1969 and became mayor of the city for two four-year terms in 1978.
Reportedly, her biography says her “most notable achievements” are the “enactment of the federal Assault Weapons Ban in 1994” and the “six-year review of the CIA’s detention and interrogation program that culminated in the 2014 release of the report’s executive summary and passage of legislation ensuring that certain post-9/11 interrogation methods are never used again.”
In February, the senator had announced that she would not run for re-election to a sixth term as California’s senior senator in the general election in 2024.
A week after her announcement, she was away from the Senate for more than two months after she recovered from shingles.
Feinstein is survived by her daughter, granddaughter and three step children.
A cause of death has not yet been released.
Stay informed! Receive breaking news blasts directly to your inbox for free. Subscribe here. https://www.oann.com/alerts