Sen. Dianne Feinstein's (D-CA) breathtakingly selfish refusal to step down from her Senate seat may be benefiting Republicans, who get to watch President Joe Biden's judicial confirmations stagnate as they wait for the California Democrat to show up to work. But there's little question that the hubris of Feinstein, who turns 90 next month, sets a precedent that is bad for the republic as a whole.
Feinstein, who took nearly three months of leave from the Capitol under the guise of "shingles," returned to Congress only last week in a wheelchair and with a visage that makes Biden look positively like a spring chicken. Since then, Feinstein's staffers have tightened their usual iron ring of security around the senator until multiple reporters caught a damning exchange, with one journalist asking the heavy-hitting question of ... how her colleagues have responded since her return to Washington from medical leave.