Schumer’s Notes Reveal Feinstein Could Return To The Senate As Soon As Next Week

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (DN.Y.) is “hopeful” Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) will return to the Senate next week after speaking with her on the phone, according to an image of his notes prepared for a press conference on Tuesday.

The document, titled “DEBT CEILING DEFECT,” that Schumer brought with him to the news conference, included a possible question about Feinstein’s future in the upper house.

“With the new June 1 deadline, isn’t it time to tell Sen. Feinstein she has to come back next week or resign?” asks the document, captured by Politico photojournalist Francis Chung, referring to the looming debt deadline.

“I spoke to Senator Feinstein yesterday,” the response follows. “We are both hopeful that she can return next week.”

However, Schumer didn’t finish by talking about Feinstein’s prolonged absence during the press conference.

A Schumer spokesman confirmed the authenticity of the document to multiple news points of sale.

“It was in his notes, and he would have said so if anyone asked him,” his office said. told politician.

Feinstein, who was hospitalized with a case of shingles in February, has been recovering at his home in San Francisco and has not provided a return date. She has said that she will return to Washington once her doctors allow her to travel.

His absence is receiving renewed attention after the Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen’s Warning that the US government could hit the debt ceiling ahead of schedule on June 1, making his vote in the house crucial.

Feinstein’s absence is already being felt on the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee, where she poses a challenge to President Joe Biden’s legislative priorities, including the approval of his judicial nominees.

Although Feinstein asked to be temporarily replaced on the panel, the request was denied by Republicans.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (DN.Y.) on Tuesday United some of her fellow progressive Democrats in calling for Feinstein’s resignation.

“Their refusal to stand down or appear is doing great damage to the judiciary, precisely where copyright is being stripped,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “That failure means that now in this precious window, Democrats can only move on to nominees approved by the Republican Party.”

Feinstein has announced that he will not run for re-election, but intends to serve out the remainder of his term, which ends in January 2025.