It was a long 19 seconds.
US Senate Leader Mitch McConnell is 81. Senator Diane Feinstein is 90. They have spent literally all of their adult lives as career politicians in Washington, being paid and compensated handsomely by the American people and having the best healthcare that money can buy. Now they have had to come to terms with the reality of old age. No one lives forever and the body starts to degrade, sometimes quickly. The vast majority of us go through this process in private and anonymity. One of the draw backs of being in their shoes is that they are elected public officials. Nothing is private.
We have all experienced friends, parents or grandparents go through this process. We were there to watch over them and make sure they didn’t over reach their limitations.
Unfortunately for these two that is not possible. It seems that they are unwilling to give up the accumulated power and the fawning attention they receive from staff and aides that depend on them for a paycheck. People who are content to selfishly prop them up so that they don’t have to go hunting for a job.
I got a sick feeling watching McConnell stare into space for those 19 seconds. He came back out a few minutes later claiming he was fine. I know better. He has been falling down lately, including an event in March that caused a concussion. Falling down is the beginning of the end.
Doesn’t he have friends and family that he would like to spend his remaining years with? Hasn’t he been up there long enough?
He is up for re-election in 2026 when he will be 84 years old. He has had a good ride. If he were to resign, Kentucky’s governor would appoint someone from a list of three submitted by the state Republican Party. For the good of our country and his own best interest this is what he should do. But I woudn’t bet on it.
The other day during a defense appropriations hearing Diane Feinstein started doing what politicians love to do. Give a speech. About 15 seconds into it, an aide whispered in her ear. Committee chair Patty Murray, D-Wash., then told Feinstein: “Just say aye.”
“Aye,” Feinstein said. She was later heard voting against another measure before she was corrected and switched to “yes.”
Diane Feinstein is 90 and has been a senator since 1992. She has been absent from the senate for months recovering from complications from shingles. So far she has resisted calls to resign and has stated she is going to finish out her term that ends in January 2025.
One of the people running to replace her is none other than pencil neck Adam Schiff who has a good chance of winning this seat.
Term limits. Now, please.
