Feinstein Faces Dem Censure After Backing Mukasey

One day after voting to elevate a divisive conservative judge to the federal appeals court in New Orleans, California Sen. Dianne Feinstein was the president's guest aboard Air Force One. She had been invited to survey the damage from the recent spate of Southern California wildfires.

The senator later remarked privately that she found her conversation with Bush aboard Air Force One "illuminating," a source close to Feinstein told the Huffington Post.

Two weeks later, Feinstein was one of two Democrats on the Senate judiciary committee to vote to send Michael Mukasey's nomination to be the new attorney general to the full Senate. Her support helped turn the tide in favor of a nomination that faced an uncertain future after Mukasey refused to say whether waterboarding was torture.

When the full Senate voted, Feinstein was one of only six Democrats to vote in favor of confirming Mukasey.

Now, a coalition of progressive Democrats upset with Feinstein's controversial votes will ask the California Democratic Party to censure her at its executive board meeting this weekend, the Huffington Post has learned.

The move comes as Feinstein again finds herself under fire for saying Thursday that she now supports granting legal immunity to telecom companies that shared customer email and phone messages with the federal government as part of the warrantless surveillance program.

"Dianne Feinstein does not listen to the people of California," said Rick Jacobs, president of the Courage Campaign, a progressive organization in California. "She supports George Bush's agenda time after time."

Feinstein's office did not respond to messages seeking comment.

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East Bay For Democracy, a chartered Democratic Club outside San Francisco, will introduce the censure motion on Saturday at the state party's executive board meeting in Anaheim. The Governing Board of the Progressive Caucus of the California Democratic Party and the Progressive Democrats of America are also backing the measure.

In addition to her move to back Mukasey, critics have lashed out at her decision last month to vote to confirm Judge Leslie Southwick to the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in New Orleans. Southwick's opponents charged that his record on the bench in Mississippi demonstrated that he was both racist and homophobic. The Congressional Black Caucus, Human Rights Campaign and People for the American Way opposed his nomination.

The censure resolution faces an uphill battle. In order to be considered by the full executive board, it must first make it through the party's resolutions committee, which must approve the text unanimously.

The text of the resolution is below:

Whereas Senator Dianne Feinstein voted to support the nomination of Judge Michael Mukasey as United States Attorney General, thereby elevating to the highest position in law enforcement a man who refused to renounce the right of the President to resort to torture and who refused to recognize waterboarding as a form of torture, and by this action Senator Feinstein failed to oppose President Bush and failed to stand for the ideals of the Democratic Party, which abhors torture and stands firmly against its use by the United States at all times and places; and

Whereas Senator Feinstein voted to confirm Judge Leslie Southwick for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit despite his clear record of racism and gender discrimination, thus failing to stand firmly with the Democratic Party, which supports gender equality and opposes racism in any of its manifestations; and

Whereas these examples are far from the only instances where Senator Feinstein, after seeking and securing the support and endorsement of the California Democratic Party, has failed to support the policies and principles of our party

Therefore be it resolved that the California Democratic Party expresses its disappointment at, and censure of, Senator Feinstein for ignoring Democratic principles and falling so far below the standard of what we expect of our elected officials.

Comments

[markdale25]

Schumer should be censured as well. Both of them are turncoats.

[hippybaby1970]

re:prolix- you better believe i am partisan and i make no apologies. it was the republican party that has violated the Constitution and has run this country into the ground. bush,in no small part was elected because of fence-sitters like you. why should we accomodate criminals and their supporters.

[American Pie]

I have been coming to this site since the summer of 05.

In all that time, I have never seen so many idiots post up to a single topic.

What gives? Can you really be so stupid? or is it just an act that you put on for acceptance with the other goofballs at this site?

Be honest. Why do you come here? Isn't there something you can do that is more productive than bitch about members of your own party?

[Semper]

One think I am refusing to do is to give up my party for Neo Conservatives who have infiltrated the Democratic Party. Diane is one of them. I truth is too many Democratic representives give me a weak feeling in the stomach when they speak and act. Diane is one of them. My instincts have always seem to serve me well. And when I listen to her, its always about a non issue. Her big claim to fame is about Alberto Gonzolas and his removal from office. And that was important, but the truth is that she is very weak. She lacks substance over form. She just does not seem to get it. If you can't understand torture as a minimum act of concern, or call into question the qualifications of an Attorney General, what do you support. Now I question why anyone would support her status as a future representative in the Senate. She is awful.

[American Pie]

How could you poor saps have been so stupid to elect her in the first place?

Doesn't anyone in your party use their heads for anything else but slurping semgma?

Get a clue...cha­nge your ways...vot­e republican!

[psk]

Last I checked elected officials were just that, ELECTED. They are elected BY the PEOPLE, to represent THE PEOPLE not special interest groups or corporations, or be dictated to and obey the president.

If they can not do the job they were elected to do, and that is REPRESENT the PEOPLE, and do what the PEOPLE want, then perhaps they need to be fired.

If George needs his thing sucked, or fanny kissed that bad, he has Laura to do that.

[KevinLoyalAmerican]

Good!
She's already lost my vote.

[dax49]

feinstein and schumer betrayed both the american people and the constitution

[3443649]

HA! HA! HA! LOL! Does anyone honestly beleive a censure will happen?

On another slant. Has anyone noticed how Dopey Feinstein has appeared lately? The old heifer is fading out people, or she is overdosing on her funny stuff

[davidwparker]

Hey, CA liberals ... didn't you have a chance to toss that bitch out a few months ago? But, don't worry. 2012 is coming up again and you can vote for her again. And, again. And, again.

[ronw1224]

Gee, ya think if American Pie's parents divorced they'd still be brother and sister?

[wordvarc]

'
Watch Feinstein foul up the dems attempt to demand a withdrawal timetable from her new buddy 'w.'
.

[liberalredneck01]

She should have been censured a long time ago for her and her husbands war profiteering! Which by the way IS a felony charge! Just goes to prove that neither party is looking out for the best interests of the American people. Thats exactly why Im proud to be an Independent.

[hippybaby1970]

re:pie- maybe you should toss some of your pearls of wisdom to the republican party since they wont be getting elected to much of anything for a long time. how does it feel to be on the losing side of history?

[BrianPDX]

Feinstein doesn't need to listen to anybody. She can't be recalled and she is a lame duck Senator who will show her true colors now. She support Bush and his policies like her fellow Senator, Lieberman.