hopefully, we'll get some more

answers for that family soon.

Fill Shuman. Thank you. Big

A bombshell story in the San

Francisco Chronicle is

questioning whether California

Senator Dianne Feinstein is

still mentally fit to serve. The

Democratic center Knitters. Who

say her memory is so bad and she

sometimes forgets people and

conversations. The story is co

authored by Joe Gary Foley and

our Guests. Talk Open Welcome

the show for the first time.

Thanks so much for having me

This is not an easy story to

report. What are the key

takeaways you had from some of

those difficult conversations?

Yeah I think difficult

conversations is a great way to

put it. I spoke with four

whom were Democrats, a

California Democratic member of

Congress and three former

staffers. Four Senator Feinstein

and throughout those

anecdotes and observations

really conveyed at a real

concern about her ability to

really perform the job. She is

expected to do as one of two

senators for nearly 40 million

people of California You know,

the California Democratic member

of Congress. I spoke with. Uh I

had a husband in February had an

interaction with her. That took

place over several hours. Where

not only did they not have the

sort of rigorous, detailed

policy discussion that they were

accustomed to having with

Senator Feinstein and they had

they had had over you no more

than a decade over the years.

Not only did that not transpire

, but this lawmaker found

themselves introducing

themselves to Senator Feinstein

but multiple times throughout

the Converse. Station when she

would forget portions of the

conversation that they had

already had and You know these?

These lapses in memory were not

consistent. They were not all

the time. There's sort of a mix

of days. You know, sharper days

and days where she's having

trouble recognizing people she

knows according to them, And so

that makes it all the more

difficult to sort of pinpoint

because it kind of ebbs and

flows, But it's definitely there

. According to these really up

frankly I've been hearing the

same thing for years that there

are good days and bad days and

her staff doesn't know when the

good days are going to be. And

for part of that reason, maybe

why she has not done an

interview with us. She has not

done an interview on camera with

us for over four years, she's

turned down every request is the

only statewide official who has

not appeared on this show. She

did not grant an interview

request to you and Joe. She did

send you this statement. We

wanna put it up on the screen.

There is no question I'm still

people of California, and I'll

put my Record up. Against

anyone's her longtime friend

Nancy Pelosi, The speaker of the

House sent you this statement

saying, It's quote

unconscionable that just weeks

after losing her beloved husband

of more than four decades and

after decades of outstanding

leadership to our city and state

, she's being subjected to these

beneath the dignity in which she

has led. And the esteem in which

she is held all of the

statements on the record where

support of her. It's a very

different story clearly when

people speak to you privately,

now that this warrant is out,

what are people saying to you

We haven't seen almost anything

from from, you know, elected

officials in California. I'm

certainly you know, I've seen

academics and consultant types

of weather. You know, there

should be a fresh look at

whether there should be term

limits for federal office

because the truth is her term

And there really is almost no

nothing that can be done.

There's technically something

but it's almost never used and

traders from the Senate, which

this is not that circumstances,

There's really nothing that can

be done. Even if voters feel

that she's she's no longer able

to serve them unless she decides

to step aside. Have you gotten

the sense that she is anywhere

close to stepping aside? You

know, we have not gotten that

sense. There's no indication and

you know, in our reporting,

there's this sense of sort of in

addition to the pain and the

sadness because all of these

people Deeply respect Senator

Feinstein and Revere her. I

mean, these are not people who

take what they were telling me

lightly. I mean, these were

painful conversations for them

to have. That's how Grave The

situation has become, so it's

very hard for anyone to convince

her that now is not the time for

her to be serving. That's what

my reporting show. Well. If she

did actually step down, it would

be up to California Governor

Gavin Newsom to pick her

replacement. He already picked

Kamala Harris replacement he's

picked. The attorney general has

picked the secretary of state in

California. In March of last

year. Joy Reid asked Newsome

about that possibility. Here's

what he said on MSNBC, if, in

fact, Dianne Feinstein were to

retire, Will you nominate an

African American woman to

restore the seat that Kamala

United States Senate? And do you

have a name in mind? I have

multiple names and mine. We have

multiple names in mind. And the

heard After that the team.

Feinstein was not happy with the

governor for making that comment

. But all this does lead to a

conversation about potential

as a potential frontrunner?

Would it be Congresswoman

Barbara Lee? She's certainly in

the mix. I think you you would

have to include her on the list

. You know, there's Holly

Mitchell. There's Karen Bass. I

mean, there's London breed.

There's all kinds of really

aspiring up and coming

California. Politicians and it's

not just you know the people on

the list. There's a long line.

Of very enterprising California

politicians who have been

statewide office. I have a very

hard time believing that even if

he did appoint someone to the

seat that there weren't wouldn't

be a long line of folks who

wanted to challenge them for it,

because you know, Senator

Feinstein has held the seat for

30 years. There are a lot of

folks who have had their eye on

it for a long time, and we could

see a very contested election.

are for it. I think about people

like Adam Schiff for Katie

Porter. I mean, there's a long

list. List of people that have

been wanting to do this open.

her work in the San Francisco

Chronicle. We appreciate your

reporting. We appreciate you

joining us. Thanks so much for

having me and we appreciate your