Ailing Senator Dianne Feinstein, 90, gives her DAUGHTER power of her attorney after a
Ailing Senator Dianne Feinstein, 90, gives her DAUGHTER power of her attorney after a string of cognitive concerns and during a bitter dispute over her late husband’s estate
- Feinstein and daughter are at odds with Blum’s three daughters over access to late husband Richard Blum’s life insurance policy
- They are also dueling over Feinstein’s desire to sell a beach house in a ritzy neighborhood in Stinson Beach, north of San Francisco
- Last week Feinstein had to be told to ‘just say aye’ when voting for a defense bill during an Armed Services markup
Dianne Feinstein’s daughter Katherine now has power of attorney over her mother’s affairs – as the ailing 90-year-old refuses to relinquish her California Senate seat.
A new New York Times report detailed the messy legal dispute that is currently pitting Feinstein and her daughter, 66, against her late wealthy husband Richard Blum’s three children.
The Feinsteins are at odds with Blum’s three daughters over access to Blum’s life insurance policy – which the senator says she needs to pay for her growing health insurance bills. Feinstein is covered by Medicare and the DC Health Link, which provides health plans for members of Congress.
They are also dueling over Feinstein’s desire to sell a beach house in a ritzy neighborhood in Stinson Beach, north of San Francisco.
Dianne Feinstein’s daughter Katherine now has power of attorney over her mother’s affairs – as the ailing 90-year-old refuses to relinquish her California Senate seat
Katherine Feinstein has already filed two suits her mother’s two co-trustees. The first lawsuit states that the beach house Senator Feinstein wants to sell is in disrepair and she no longer wants to use it and that she wants to sell it in the summer or fall.
The second lawsuit claims Blum’s life insurance policy has been held back by other trustees.
Feinstein, 90, was born in 1933 and has held her seat in the Senate representing California for nearly 31 years.
Her reputation has begun to sour as the ailing senator clings to power despite apparent cognitive decline and absence that led to a backlog of judge confirmations through the Judiciary Committee.
Last week Feinstein had to be told to ‘just say aye’ when voting for a defense bill during an Armed Services markup.
When she was supposed to vote ‘aye’ or ‘nay,’ she instead launched into a bizarre diatribe.
‘I would like to support a ‘yes’ vote on this. It provides $823 billion …’ she said. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., leaned over and whispered, ‘just say aye.’
‘Aye,’ Feinstein said.
Feinstein held up judicial confirmations that could not move forward without her vote on the split Judiciary Committee for over two months.
After her sick leave, Feinstein returned to the Capitol in May looking noticeably thinner and frail, about ten weeks after being diagnosed with and being briefly hospitalized for shingles in San Francisco.
Feinstein returned with vision and balance impairments as well as facial paralysis known as Ramsay Hunt syndrome in addition to encephalitis, a brain infection.
She is the fifth-oldest person to serve in the Senate. Strom Thurmond, the segregationist Democrat-turned-Republican, was the oldest and longest-serving senator ever: he was 100 when he retired in January 2003 after 48 years in office.
She is also one of the wealthiest: Feinstein is worth an estimated $58 million, according to the Los Angeles Times. She was married to investment banker Richard Blum from 1980 until his death in 2022.
Feinstein, whose groundbreaking political career shattered gender barriers from San Francisco’s City Hall to the corridors of Capitol Hill, announced in February that she would not seek reelection.
Three House Democrats have already lined up to try to replace her: Reps. Barbara Lee, Katie Porter and Adam Schiff. Businessman Eric Early is running on the Republican side.