The medical condition of an ailing Democratic senator is much worse than first feared, media reports say.
The New York Times reported Thursday that Dianne Feinstein, 89, has been diagnosed with vision and balance disorders and facial paralysis known as Ramsay Hunt syndrome.
It is a known complication of shingles.
The virus also caused a previously unreported case of encephalitis that leaves patients with persistent memory or language problems, sleep disturbances, bouts of confusion, mood disturbances, headaches and difficulty walking.
She is also helped in the U.S. House of Congress by the daughter of former speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Nancy Corinne Prowda, 58, has been spotted alongside Dianne Feinstein, 89, who has just returned from 10 weeks of sick leave due to shingles.
The marketing manager has appeared with the outgoing senator following the departure of several trusted associates amid questions about her eligibility for office.
Feinstein, seen earlier on Thursday, has been flanked by Nancy Pelosi’s daughter in recent weeks. She will retire next year
When asked last week how it felt to be back in the Senate after her three-month battle with shingles, Feinstein bizarrely said she’s been there all along
A Feinstein spokesperson said Prowda was not paid a salary for her role. Feinstein’s office did not respond to a separate request regarding the senator’s health diagnosis.
Feinstein, a Democrat representing California, would step down when her sixth and final term ends next year.
The legislator is also known to suffer from vision and balance problems, and aides often wheel her around the Senate Building in a wheelchair.
During her months-long absence, she received increasing calls to resign, particularly from other California Democrats and the editors of the New York Times.
But Politico reported Thursday that the Pelosi family is helping care for the long-serving legislator to increase the chances of Nancy Pelosi’s favored successor.
The outlet’s Playbook newsletter stated that ensuring Feinstein completes her full term will help Adam Schiff, currently a member of Congress, win the seat.
Schiff, who as chairman of the House Intelligence Committee investigated the now-debunked conspiracy theory that Donald Trump colluded with Russia, has already raised $15 million for a possible election race.
But California Governor Gavin Newsom has vowed to appoint a woman of color if Feinstein retires early.
That would leave the door open for Barbara Lee, a congresswoman representing California, to take up the remainder of the current term.
California has a jungle primary, meaning the top two winners, regardless of party, advance to the general election.
That would see the heavily Democratic state running with two Democrats in the November 2024 election.
Pelosi, seen here at a protest for more affordable childcare, supports Adam Schiff to take over Dianne Feinstein in the Senate
Schiff has already raised more than $15 million and is ahead of his closest rival, Katie Porter, in the polls
“If (Feinstein) resigns now, there’s a huge chance that Barbara Lee will be appointed — and so it will be harder for Schiff,” Politico quoted a Pelosi family confidant as saying.
The source added that the relationship between Pelosi, her daughter and the senator is “being kept in the bud and held very, very closely.”
But Pelosi’s office angrily denied the claims, insisting their friendship is “personal, not political.”
Nancy Corinne and Senator Feinstein have been friends for decades. Nancy Corinne supported her recovery from her shingles,” the spokesperson said.
A longtime ally of the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Feinstein has served as a senator for the Golden State since 1992 and is the oldest senator in the chamber.
But her cognitive abilities and health have been in question for months after she missed a series of important Senate votes.
She also seemed confused in public, sometimes yelling at aides as she struggled to keep up with the voices in the upstairs room.
Her return to work earlier this month also restored the Democrats’ 51-49 majority in the Senate, increasing the likelihood of Democratic-backed bills getting a stamp.
“My doctors have advised me to work a lighter schedule when I return to the Senate,” Feinstein said last month. “I hope those problems will go away as I continue to recover.”
She caused confusion in her first Senate appearance in nearly three months by claiming she was there all the time.
‘No, I’ve been here. I voted,” the 89-year-old told reporters when they asked how she felt and what her colleagues thought of her return. ‘Please. You either know it or you don’t,” she added bizarrely.
She then returned to the Senate Judiciary Committee last Thursday, arriving almost 90 minutes late and after some judicial candidates had already been voted on.
She received a standing ovation from both Republicans and Democrats on the panel when she joined them after being away due to health concerns.
In an interview upon her return, some top Democrats said they were happy to see Feinstein again and not willing to question her role in the Senate.
Hawaii Representative Ted Lieu joked that Democrats “don’t get in the way of conversations and their doctors” when asked about the octogenarian’s ability to legislate.
“I have no medical training, so I’m not going to comment on how she feels or how she looks,” said California representative Pete Aguilar.
Feinstein’s absence made it impossible to pass some of President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees.
That’s because Republicans both refused to support them and refused to allow Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to appoint a temporary replacement for Feinstein on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The Biden administration will need every vote it can get as the US teeters on the brink of potential bankruptcy as lawmakers squabble over the size of the government’s $32 trillion debt ceiling.
Concerns about Feinstein’s deteriorating mental state were first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle last April.
Katie Porter, another California Democratic congresswoman who is eyeing the 89-year-old Senate seat, told CNN on Thursday that tougher rules are needed to address issues arising from “weak” lawmakers.
Katie Porter, Another Democrat Congresswoman, Is Also Eyeing Feinstein’s Senate Seat
“I think change is too late,” Porter said. “Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time we’ve had this situation where we were really concerned about how senators recover and if they can come back and actually do the job.”
Senator John Fetterman, whose health problems from stroke and clinical depression are well documented, took two months off work to seek treatment.
Feinstein has gradually moved away from several senior positions in recent years.
In 2020, she said she would not serve as the top Democrat on the judicial panel after criticism from liberals over her handling of Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation.
Fiercely independent, she also famously clashed with the Obama administration over her refusal to keep secret intelligence reports about the US military’s use of torture.